Every Second
by MS
Summary: AU, SxS. Sakura has known Syaoran as her friend and her protector. Their feelings are changing as they are thrown into a battle of survival. Then 2 detectives come raising questions, risking their lives and nothing would ever be the same again. YuxTo ExT
1. Two Friends, One Circumstance

MS

This is an AU based multi chaptered story. Loosely based upon the manga Fake or better said, many aspects were taken but not completely used. If you haven't read it and do enjoy yaoi, then I strongly recommend it. In this chapter the characters are young, while in the next they will be a couple of years older. Also, other characters like Touya and Yukito will appear after this introductory chapter. This is more of a prologue than anything else, so it's background information that will set up part of the story.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CCS characters…

**Every Second**

_Chapter 1: Two Friends, One Circumstance_

"I've told you to stay away," Sakura cowered as she felt the sharp nails digging into her skin. Her foster mother was grinning maliciously as well as the men that were sprawled over the chairs around the poorly lit table.

The building that they currently occupied was a dirty hellhole, whose foundation was crumbling. The old walls' bricks were sometimes unpainted, as it chipped under the poor care it had received over the years. The stairs croaked every step you took, the banisters unsafe to any pressure that might be placed against them.

Sakura's eyes lingered over the obvious packets that littered the table, the knives and glittering gun the gleamed against the poor light afforded by the corner lamp. There was a white powder visible to the naked eye over a slight incision of the carton.

She shivered, her skin crawling as felt the eyes of the men that were currently watching the struggle. She bit her lip, a reflex that would stop her quivering as she saw the grins that covered their faces. They weren't strangers to her, as she had seen them come and go from the place at least twice a week for as long as she could remember.

She didn't want to know what the actual relationship her current guardian had with them, knowing that she provided a place to hide the merchandise, and sometimes themselves was enough to worry her.

Sakura may only be nine years old, but she knew all there was to see about the slums and the crimes that littered the neighborhood that she occupied. There were many things that happened to all that habituated this particular neighborhood if you weren't careful. Especially to a nine year old girl whose guardian was always desperate for the next score.

If only her father hadn't been imprisoned, she was sure that they would have left this place for a new home. Those had been the plans made on castles of clouds. Nothing like that was possible when you were dealing and mingling with the scum of the world.

It was only supposed to be the last scam, a last respite to gather enough money to finally leave this place they had found themselves trapped, but he had tried it with the wrong person. He had been set up for a much worse crime, and taken as the scapegoat. He'd already served 2 years of his sentence, and with more to go.

And then, things had progressed from bad to worse. He had been diagnosed with cancer while in the hospital over a beating he had received while in prison. Sakura had finally realized why her father had gotten so sickly every year. He had been so susceptible to every cold and flu that spread like wildfire in their neighborhood.

She had barely understood what that had meant in real life. He was currently dying, not wanting to divulge the place where he had gathered the money from his previous escapades so that she could bail him out. With their luck some other yutz had already uncovered the place and taken all that her father had scrimmaged throughout the years.

"She can stay," one of the men replied as Canare pushed her backwards somewhat protectively. Canare sharply turned to them, somehow shielding her young charge from their gazes, her own thoughts revealing the truth of their intentions.

She knew the only way to get the girl running out was to spook her in such a way that she would disappear from their dealings for at least a few days. That was enough to finish the current deal and let Sakura's presence slip out of their minds once again.

It was the only thing that she could do for the girl at this time. Reality was too harsh for their lifestyle, but she could shield her for just a bit longer before just existing brought her into a situation that she would not be able to control. Their world was a bastard place.

"Yeah, stay," she starting pulling back into the room, making sure that her hand slackened on the hold. "Maybe its time you entered the family business," Canare smirked, her teeth showing, the cracked tooth gleaming on the lamp light, registering the horror and comprehension of what was actually alluded to.

"No," she shouted as she fought free of her hold and ran toward the room. She slammed the door closed, the sound of the lock coming into place.

Most of the men laughed as they knew that the excuse for a lock would give away with just one hit. Maybe one of these days the bitch would actually just offer her charge as payment for her needed protection.

"Let's finish this," Canare walked back, hoping that the lewd expressions of her companions would soon be forgotten. Sakura was too beautiful. She was still a child, but that wouldn't deter any of the men that would screw anything with two legs that passed them by.

Still, there was only so much she could do to deter the inevitable. She could never understand what it was about that girl that had taken her brother's attention. There must have been something about her.

She needed to get away.

With that thought on her mind, Sakura took the small bag she used to go to her school and threw a change of clothes with the old books and texts. She swung it over her shoulders, strapping it securely as she opened the window of her room.

There was an old tree, decaying and dying on the side of her window. It's long and old branches came from the trunk which lay on the neighbor's yard. It had been her means of escape many times now.

Her breath hitched as she recalled the scrapping of the chair she had placed against the door a few months before. One of Canare's costumers had wandered to her own door after she had taken her usual shot of drugs. Canare was a user in desperate conditions. She had a good head for business when it came down to dealing it, but she was an addict to the substance as well.

She hadn't been able to sleep well in the nights. Her eyes had shot open when the scrapping of the chair filled the room with its groans. She knew that if it had been Canare, she would have simply slammed the door open.

The door stopped about three inches, when the secured rope stopped the door from going further. Sakura had placed her shoes on, grabbed the light pack she had left prepared over the meager desk that occupied the room and had leapt through the window.

One thing she owed to Canare was her cadence. She had never lied to Sakura in the events that were to take place while she was in her charge.

It was a good thing that Sakura was a very agile person, or she was sure that she would have slipped from the branches of the tree that groaned under her weight.

After they finished the deal, she was sure that her guardian would take her share of the merchandise and be in a state of euphoria for the following days. The men that came into the house could do whatever they wanted in there when she was so unresponsive to the real world.

There was only one place where she could be safe.

Sakura stepped out into the branch, letting the soles of her feet conform to the branches. Spreading her arms to her side for balance, she calmly walked toward the trunk. She embraced it as she dared to breathe once again. It was always nerve racking when that happened.

Looking through the darkened reflection of the branches, she descended. She looked to the sides of the tree toward the streets for shadows. There was none around.

She jumped from the lowest branch, landing in a crouch. Turning to her desired destination, she broke into a run. She turned the alleyways, jumped over the trash cans and bags that lay overturned in the streets and sidewalks.

He was the only one that could offer the sanctuary that she actually needed.

Syaoran awoke to a tap over his windowpane. He knew of only one person that had gotten into the habit of doing it. How she ever managed to stay on top of that tree on his backyard he had no clue.

Opening his eyes, Syaoran threw off the cover he used to sleep in and placed his feet in his slippers. The hardwood floor was cold beneath his soles. It was the middle of October and the night temperatures were currently dropping at an alarming rate.

"Sakura," he said her name as the tired 10 year old boy managed to open the broken window. It was a hassle to keep it propped while she scampered through the small leeway it left.

"Why don't you ever use the door?" He asked as he yawned widely into his palm. "You could knock you know."

She grinned at his exasperated tone. "I didn't want to wake your father." She whispered as she sat over the covers on his bed. She threw her school bag on the floor, her shoes landing beside it.

"He's not home," Syaoran informed her, following suit. He scrambled onto the bed sheets and covered his body with the material. It seemed like this was going to be one of those nights.

"Canare's up to her old tricks again?" he asked as Sakura unbuttoned her shorts and threw on her sleeping shirt. She settled and nested beside his body, both sharing the body heat that would help them get closer to slumber.

"Her pals are in the house," she muttered as she snuggled into his back.

"Alright," Syaoran yawned again, feeling her infectious reaction as he closed his eyes. "Father won't be here for quite a while, so you can stay a couple of days."

"Don't worry," Sakura leaned her head against his hair, her forehead against his neck. "I swiped some money the last week, so you won't have to worry about keeping me fed."

"One of these days you're going to get caught Sakura," Syaoran warned as he felt her hand sneak over his waist.

"I'm too good for that," the two kids turned in. They had to get up early for school the next morning and getting a few hours of sleep in the night greatly helped to deal with what the world threw their way.

Syaoran's father opened the door to his son's room as he came from his night's usual work. Morning was quickly following as the sky turned from its dark pitch to a lighter gray.

His attention was caught by the picture that was presented on the small bed. She had managed to sneak into the house once again it seemed. It wasn't that surprising to find the sleeping girl spooned over his son's body every other night.

He shook his head as he saw their bodies enter twined and tired. They looked like angels with no care in the world. It was so far from the usual sight in his world that he could only wince.

He could not comprehend why these two seemed so attached to one another. They had formed a fast relationship when they had started school and Sakura's father was still in the picture. Everything else was history as the saying went. They were more like siblings than friends with the way they dealt with each other.

He closed the door, slipping down the stairs toward the kitchen. He needed to leave a note for his son once again. It was going to be quite a while until he could return. Dealing with those drug lords and their stash of merchandise always took some dealing and bantering. It would be several days before he would return.

He looked around to the grim kitchen, the sinks and table full of cracks and old dirty surfaces. This wasn't a place he wanted to remain in with whatever was left of his years alive. He knew enough of the world he ventured in to know that guys in his line of work did not have long life-spans. It was just a fact of life he wanted to outrun, but was sure that he couldn't in the end. He had to do something before his son had to turn to his father's own tricks though.

Canare should be receiving the new merchandise that he needed to peddle. Sakura was much safer in this rag of a house than in her guardian's charge while she was under the effects of her addiction. It was quite a miracle to see that Sakura was still pretty much untouched from their world. Canare could be many things, but her promise to her brother had been kept in the minimum.

Still, there was only a matter of time. In their world, it was only a matter of time before you had reality knocking on your door and you had no choice but to let it in.


	2. Three Seasons, Two Strangers

MS

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Card captor Sakura characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 2: Three Seasons, Two Strangers_

Something had gone terribly wrong. Syaoran felt it. His intuition had never misled him before. Too many days had passed with no word whatsoever. That meant that something had gone terribly wrong. Nothing else could explain it.

Syaoran walked to the obscure window by his room. He flicked a bit of the tattered curtain to the side, affording him a look to the outside of the house. Those men were still lounging in the corner of the street.

So they looked like the common thugs that always littered the street, but Syaoran couldn't help but feel that they had some other purpose. Maybe it was the way that they silently communicated to one another with their heads and mannerisms. It was then that they didn't look like common thugs just waiting for a score on the filthy streets.

This was dangerous. Not only to his well being but to Sakura's as well. He had to think of Sakura first. He'd promised her father the last time he had accompanied her to visit him that he would look out for her. It was just a few minutes when she had gone for a glass of water at the prison hospital for her father when he had talked calmly and rationally to the usually quiet boy.

They had understood each other very well. Not too many words were needed for the subtlety of the message to be wrung through. Maybe it was because of it that her father had told him something that he'd never said to anyone else. He had talked about the money he'd hidden those years before he got caught. Money could open doors to unknown places that would be better than this.

It wasn't like he was blind to her like everyone else thought. He just didn't show the world his perceptions of the girl that had always been his best friend. She was beautiful. Too beautiful to not gain the attention of every scumbag in their neighborhood as they kept growing. Still, Syaoran could only do so much. And only when he was present and he couldn't always be with her.

He also had to worry about himself. And Sakura was very strong for being such a wiry girl. If the occasion asked for it, she could rise to the challenge. Still, if he wasn't around, then Sakura would be left without someone to run to when things took a turn to the worst and she couldn't handle it. He hadn't done this himself in a couple of years, but maybe it was time to actually go to her this time around.

Syaoran quietly moved away from the window, giving a last look to the men which were now smoking cigarettes while still keeping a look over the very old house. Something was definitely going to go down and he was sure he didn't want to be here whenever they'd choose to spring whatever surprise party they were planning. It was time to hightail it out of here.

He checked all of the places he had hidden money in throughout the years in his bedroom and threw a change of clothes into his bag. It would be wise to take everything he wanted to maintain in his possession before something occurred.

He took a last look around the place to make sure he hadn't left anything before going to his father's room. It was usually locked, but it was nothing that could stop him. Syaoran had very good hands when it came to unlocking doors and drawers. It was a skill that he was sure would come in handy to him many times during his lifetime.

He knew exactly where to look. There always seemed to be something there. He was careful not to show himself over by the window of his father's room, Syaoran came to the closet and looked for the slab. He had done this so many times before that he could find it in his sleep. Habits came in handy when it was dark and you couldn't light a match to see beyond the patch of darkness before your eyes.

His fingers grabbed the sides and pulled. The piece of stone was kind of heavy, but necessary for others not to stumble on it if they searched the closet space. He reached inside and froze. There usually was some money in here, but this felt like a plastic container. It felt like a bag. Syaoran couldn't breathe as the hairs around his arms stood on end.

Syaoran may be young, only 13 years old, but he wasn't stupid. He knew what his father did. He knew what it meant when he and Sakura passed by Canare's house and found countless men coming and going from the place as well. He also knew what it meant when his father disappeared for days at a time and didn't contact him. Something had gone wrong.

Still, he had never actually found anything like this inside this hiding place before. Maybe that's why the house was in constant watch by those men. There was no time to do anything else but take it as well. Syaoran was careful with the packages as he placed them on one of the bags his father had inside of the closet and moved quickly.

There was probably millions of dollars worth of merchandise in his hands. Syaoran had never felt so scared or panicked in his life. Something serious had to have happened for these things to be here. He had to be careful to not alert anyone of his flight.

Syaoran walked to the kitchen by slinking beside the walls. He grabbed the skates he'd bought recently with the money his father had given him and slung them around his neck. They weighted quite a bit, but they were his lifeline now. There was only so far that running could take you and he was very good with these things.

It was a terrifying eternity. Or at least it felt that way when he finally made it to the back fence and slid into the next house's backyard. Running through them to where he needed to go was the only way to not be mixed with the others roaming the streets this night and the safest way to get to his destination.

He'd deal with how to get inside of the house later. He didn't have time at the moment to think of something else besides just getting to his destination without giving himself away. The small bag was like dead weight around his arm.

It felt as if he was trudging a dead corpse. There were probably many littered in these packages' wake.

He was walking to the tree in the backyard in no time. It had seemed like an eternity although it was less than a few minutes. He must have rushed his steps. He looked to the second floor and the window that was beside one of the old branches that came close to the house.

Syaoran smirked to himself. The house was completely dark, but he wouldn't be surprised if Sakura kept pepper spray under her pillow as well as a knife. She seemed to prefer that little Swiss army knife that she had swiped from him some months before. He wondered if it would be safe to enter her room through the window without alerting her of his presence.

He had to take his chances. He wanted to rid himself of the bag that was currently pulling with enormous force against his arm. It was going to be such a relief to be somewhere else without having to think about the problems that just kept on surfacing for a couple of hours at least.

"What are you doing?" a grave voice came from one of the windows' drapes as he threw the bags over the windows while still leaning against the trunk of the tree. It seemed to be the favorite spot to hang for both him and Sakura.

"Something you like to do," Syaoran replied as he threw himself to the window and gladly accepted Sakura's helping hand in pulling him inside.

"What are you doing here?" Sakura blinked as she yawned into her hand. She looked down to the two bags on the floor and the dangling skates before glancing back at the door of her room. There were no movements whatsoever outside, which was a very good sign.

"I need a place to crash tonight," Syaoran smiled at Sakura while giving her his very best puppy dog face impression. She could never deny him something after doing it. "I don't know what's going on but I don't think I should stay over at my house. I need a place to stay for a couple of days."

"What about your father?" Sakura asked him while she closed the window and pulled the curtains.

"I haven't seen him in awhile, or heard of him."

"It's strange that he hasn't at least contacted you. He usually tries to stay in touch."

"Anything could happen on this business," Syaoran murmured as they both blindly listened to the voices bellow them and the scrapping of chairs. It seemed like Canare was still open for business tonight.

"At least I'll feel safer tonight," Sakura could barely control her yawning as she walked to a door that lead to a closet and pulled a second pillow as well as a better and bigger cover. "It's been awhile since you've been here."

"You're usually holed up at my house," Syaoran corrected her before pulling off his jacket and taking off his shoes. The floor was very cold to his bare feet.

"Well, we can sleep in tomorrow since it's the weekend," Sakura moved to one side of the bed while she opened the heavier cover and waited for Syaoran to join her. It didn't seem strange to her in the slightest that he should sleep on the bed with her.

Syaoran looked outside of the window and made sure the door to the room was locked before joining her. Sakura had already closed her eyes and was breathing calmly. She fell into sleep easily. Syaoran tried not to move the bed too much before settling himself on a position and pulling the covers over himself.

There were many things he needed to worry about, but now wasn't the time. He needed to sleep and recuperate himself. Only sleep would be able to restore his mind.

It wasn't long before they pulled to each other's warmth and ended spooned to one another under the covers.

She was touching bare skin. Sakura's eyes opened as her brain contested the sensory information the tip of her fingers were sending her. She was eye level with a shoulder and white skin.

She had somehow thrown herself over Syaoran while they slept. She was lying atop of his torso, using his chest as a pillow for her head as one of her hands lay near his bellybutton. She flexed her hand, feeling him shiver beneath his touch and try to shift underneath her.

It wasn't easy, but at the same time he hadn't truly awoken. Syaoran was very hard to wake up in the mornings. He wasn't a morning person by a long shot, but after he truly awoke, he wasn't able to fall asleep again easily. Sakura was different though. She usually awoke as soon as the morning sun rays came into her room. And then at the same time she fell asleep very easily.

There was safety on the bed at the moment though, so she didn't want to get off him. He felt warm and was very comfortable to use as a pillow. It was no wonder that she had gravitated to him during sleep. There was someone else who would face whatever would come through the door should the need arise. Anything could happen in this house if you let your guard down. Still, it was probably time to get off of him and let him breathe a bit easier than he could manage at the moment. Although it seemed like he could manage like this quite well.

She pressed her face closer to his bare chest, inhaling the aroma of his skin. Her head moved slightly upwards with each breath he took. His heart beat strong and loud to her ears while she could swear she could hear a bit of snoring coming from him. Maybe it was because his lips were parted and he was breathing through his mouth. Sakura giggled at the image he presented. But stifled it as it seemed that her movements were disturbing him as he shifted. Maybe it was time to get off of him. She burrowed her nose into his warmth before pulling away.

She was very careful and finally succeeded. And there she stayed in that position, watching over him for awhile as Syaoran slept on. There was something about the way that he slept that was comforting for her. He slept without a care in the world as an angel would. Or so she imagined that's what they would look like. Sakura couldn't help but smirk as that thought crossed her mind. It was something that she had been telling herself lately.

It was probably because she was starting that phase. She was finally noticing the opposite sex and the differences in between. Maybe it was because he was always there, but she'd been looking at Syaoran differently. They'd always been close, but she could safely say that she didn't think of him as a brother. Or, at least she didn't think these kind of thoughts usually occurred between siblings.

She wryly noted to herself that she depended on him as she probably would a brother. Still, Sakura was sure that she wouldn't mind kissing him. Maybe that was the difference in between a really close friend and a brother. You wouldn't really want to trade spit with a sibling.

"Why do you have that grin on your face?" Syaoran asked from his vantage point bellow her as Sakura scratched her head and stretched her arms overhead. "There's some mischief inside that head of yours."

Sakura rolled her eyes before sticking her tongue out at him and pinching him over his knee. Syaoran launched himself at her as she tried to scramble off the bed and pulled her down to the covers. They rolled with the linens, laughing and scrambling to gain the upper hand from one another in the skirmish.

They just lay exhausted a few minutes later, giggling and breathless. "I'd say you are completely awake now."

"I'd say you were right," Syaoran took that particular time to sneeze.

"Oh, gross," Sakura said as her left arm was sprayed a bit.

"It's not like we haven't done anything to each other while we were sick that wasn't worse than this," Syaoran turned into the pillow and rubbed his forehead against it. That usually got him going in the morning.

"True," Sakura smirked as he did it a second time. "Someone must be talking about you."

"Most likely," he replied before he did it three consecutive times. "I'd say that's a possibility."

Sakura stood from the bed, shifting her muscles and pulling her arms above her neck as she searched for her sandals. She really didn't like to be barefooted. She walked to the window and pushed it open to let the breeze in. She jumped up, moving her big right toe as she cursed the bag that Syaoran had left the night before on the floor. She grabbed it sloppily and threw it over the small table.

Syaoran scrambled from the bed as the bag careened from the edge of the table and fell open onto the floor. Sakura gasped as Syaoran simply hit his forehead with his hand and grimaced. Sakura was definitely not going to like the fact that he had brought those things into her room.

"What the hell?" She turned her eyes from the littered objects on the floor and glared at him. Her eyes had that dangerous slit on the sides as a tick started to appear over her eyebrow.

"Maybe I should explain," he sweat-dropped while giving a silent plea to the higher power in the heavens that Sakura wouldn't just beat his ass.

"Ohhhh, this is going to be a very interesting conversation," Syaoran gulped as he saw her start to drum her fingers along her forearms. He might not be able to survive the next five minutes.

"So, how are we going to do this," a man emerged from the open door of an old civilian/police car. He had one of those faces that with the current expression, he was able to intimidate anyone that crossed his path. His windblown, black hair fell over his forehead and the nape of his neck. It had been way too long since he'd had a haircut. He took off his sunglasses as he surveyed the house in front of them. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary for this neighborhood as it's yard was nonexistent and the outer appearance was that of a rundown property. Still, appearances were very deceiving; especially for his line of work.

"We were able to identify the corpse because the man had been through the system and his DNA was in our database. According to records he had a son that might just have a clue as to why his father was tortured in such a savage manner," the second one quickly appeared to his side, looking through his notes as he matched the address to the numbers on the front step.

"Does this look like the lock's been forced open?" his partner asked without waiting for an answer as he reached for his weapon and used his other hand to swing the door slowly inside. He grimaced at the destruction that littered in his wake. His partner signaled that the rooms on the first floor were clean.

They both looked to the stairs and to actually find someway to the second floor as each one had been destroyed. The black haired officer walked quietly and carefully into the second floor. Everything was clear. There was no soul in sight but the destruction had been done to everything inside of the place.

"It seems like someone was searching for something," he leaned down to the strewn clothes and linens that had been cut to shreds. Magazines and books were torn, page from page, and what looked to be bullet holes littered the walls.

"And it seems like they didn't find it," his partner answered while using the tip of his pen to locate the holes in the walls. "There are a couple of shells embedded here. Some passed through to the other room though."

They both looked to each other, communicating silently as they moved to the door and walked to the other room. They were examining the mess when they heard the shuffling of feet and some voices that came from bellow. They signaled to one another as they silently crept to the stairs with their guns drawn.

Still, it seemed like they were making too much noise to not want to be overheard.

"Man, this is a nightmare," a male voice came from the kitchen as the two officers approached from the right. A girl's head stuck out to look to the left toward the front door.

"It seems like they broke the locks for the front door," she managed before slipping back into the room without noticing the two men on the other side.

"I knew something like this would happen," Syaoran said under his breath as he saw all of the food thrown about the kitchen walls and the refrigerator completely broken. "Now do you understand?"

"They would have killed you," Sakura said under her breath as she shivered involuntarily at the thought. It seemed like Syaoran's father had finally done something that had placed him on the red list of his bosses. They would probably look for Syaoran since they hadn't been able to get what they had been looking for.

"Don't move!" the two teens turned to the doorway to find two men pointing very dangerous guns at their direction. "Put your hands were I can see them both of you."

"Who the hell are you?" Syaoran asked as he stared at them defiantly. If things turned for the worse, he had to give Sakura the chance to flee. She had nothing to do with this mess he seemed to be involved in. "This is my house."

"That's good to know kid," the black haired man moved his jacket a bit to the side so his plaque was showing. "We're police officers and after the job that was done to this house we'd like to be sure you're not carrying anything dangerous."

Sakura took off her backpack and handed it to the second officer. "May I see your badge as well?" It wasn't much of a question as a request.

"Good girl. It's good to ask to be sure," he willingly handed it to her. He shifted through the contents before handing it back to her with a smile. He frisked her lightly, considerate of her modesty. He gave the ok signal as soon as he was done with Syaoran. Sakura gave his badge back to him.

"You'd be Syaoran Li, right?" the black haired cop put his gun in his holster and walked further into the kitchen. "It seems like you're not much of a housekeeper," he said as he threw a glance at the kitchen and grinned as the guy shot him a stare that could one day rival his own. "Or a hurricane went through this place. You seem in one piece though."

"That's because he wasn't here last night," Sakura informed him, her head held high as she returned the stare of the man.

"Was he with you sweetheart?" the officer grinned as he saw the slight coloring come over her cheekbones. "How old are you? You couldn't be more than 10."

Sakura extended her arm and gave him the finger. "I'm 12, you moron. And he was at my house last night, all night."

The other officer shook his head as he saw his partner glare at the teenage girl that stood her ground and crossed her arms around her midsection indicating boredom. "We need you to come down to the station Mr. Li."

"Could someone tell us why?" Sakura asked as she eyed the two men. They seemed to be different in both appearance and tactics. The black haired guy was the one that played the bad cop; she was sure of it.

"It'll be better if we get out of this place and talk there. I don't think the people that went through this place are going to just leave you alone."

"This concerns my father, doesn't it?" Syaoran felt a foreboding so strong, he was sure his chest was about to explode. This confirmed it. He could feel the wheels of fate changing around him.

"You should go. They're right you know," Sakura took his hand in hers and enlaced her fingers through his. "I'll go with you." She looked to the men to see if any of them would object but only found them motioning for the teens to follow them. Both kids looked back to the house that had been their haven as they walked to the car, accepting the fact that there was one less safe place for them to live apart from their world.

"Could we at least know your names?" distrust rung in every word that Sakura uttered. She knew that there were cops that were part of the problem as they took a cut of the crimes in the area. Still, the badge had felt real when she had touched it.

The black haired cop sat behind the wheel before adjusting the seat and rearview mirror and turning on the engine. He was sure he'd seen someone lurking a couple of buildings away and intently watching their procession. It was a good thing that they had found the kid quickly or he may have shared the same fate as his father. And that girl certainly had a mouth on her when you said something she found offensive. This case was going to be hard, he just knew it.

The other officer took in his partner's silence as an ok for him to go on with the introductions. "I'm Yukito Tsukishiro, and this is my partner Touya Kinomoto," he watched them as the car flew through the streets and the neighborhood was left behind. "Would you mind telling us your name?"

"I'm Sakura," Yukito saw Touya stiffen in his seat, his hands grabbing the steering wheel with extreme force. It was just too much of a coincidence. She was in the same age range as well as what Touya's sister Sakura would be if she had been alive. "Sakura Marden."


	3. Changing Perceptions of Humble Questions

MS

Disclaimer: Do not own characters, they are from CLAMP.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 3: Changing Perceptions of Humble Questions_

He couldn't help it. He just kept staring at her as Sakura remained seated in Yukito's cubicle. Syaoran had been taken down to the morgue in the adjacent building; which was the police lab, so that he could identify the body of his father and collect the things that had been found with the body. He was the only family that the young boy had and as such he might wish to keep something of his father. It seemed like life had just taken a harsher turn against the kid.

And still, Touya could only watch across from his desk to the back of Sakura's head as she fiddled with one of the pens that Yukito always had scattered over the files that were very well placed around the surface. He'd never been able to muster at least half of the organization that his partner possessed. But then, he wasn't the one that actually took care of most of the paperwork.

It was the name. That's what had brought this feeling of watchfulness over the girl. She seemed to be somehow involved with the case and this was definitely one case that was going to get very dangerous indeed if his instincts weren't wrong. He still couldn't shake the shadow of the guy that had been watching them leave the house when they had picked up Syaoran.

The house had been ransacked and his father killed. The only thing that seemed to work for him was the fact that he had stayed over at his girlfriend's the night before. He couldn't help but frown at that statement. Surely the two kids were too young to actually be boyfriend and girlfriend. Although nothing could surprise him anymore of how kids lived their lives in these times. Well, it wasn't as if he was that much older than them, but maybe just wiser as to how one should appreciate their childhood.

He looked down to the file they had just received about Syaoran's father and whistled. He seemed to be another one of those links that lead to one of the most powerful drug rings in their city. And whenever drugs were involved, it spelled trouble for all. That might be why his chief was taking special care about this case and was very interested in the boy's well-being. Their narcotics department had been after this guy for years and just having something that could break open a case was welcomed by the department.

His watchful eyes went back to the desk before him to find it empty. He looked around instantly for the girl and narrowed his eyes as he found her leaning over one of his other coworkers' desk and strike a conversation with him. Or maybe it was a question, he wasn't sure.

He saw him stand and lead her to a corner that lead to the restrooms and come back to his seat. "You guys are going to have a very busy couple of days coming up," Duo told him as placed some new files on Touya's desk. The dark haired man was grinning as he placed the latest documents and took the ones that were already done.

"How is paper detail?" Touya grinned as he placed his feet on the corner of his desk.

"It was worth it," was all he replied before taking what he needed and departing to the file department. Touya shook his head as he remembered how sourly he had taken to being demoted for a week for crashing his police car into a van of kidnappers some years before.

Yukito waved at him as he finally glanced to the entrance of their office inside the precinct. He noted that Yukito's hand was on Syaoran's shoulder, giving the teen support as they solemnly walked to the chair. He also saw the pale color that was present and the beads of sweat that were forming on the teenager's forehead.

Touya commiserated with him. His father had been completely worked over before he had been killed and the marks of the hours he spent in pain had been left all over his body. The man had been almost completely unrecognizable as the bruises and cuts in his face had been too numerous.

Still, the look on the kid's face clearly showed that he'd been able to absorb every detail of what his father had gone through for the last hours of his life into his memory. It was something that he was not going to forget for a long time as life went on. He glanced to his partner silently, knowing that he would know what he was asking about. Yukito shook his head before walking away to bring the young guy a cup of water.

He saw the signs a mile away and took him by the hand and rushed to the restroom. The kid placed a hand over his mouth as he stumbled with the door and bent over the sink to let out whatever he'd eaten for breakfast some hours before.

Sakura slipped past him as he held the door open and waited for Yukito to approach with the paper cup in hand. Both adults' eyes were on the two kids as Syaoran just lay doubled over the sink and Sakura gently rubbed his back and used her other hand to brush away the bangs from his face as the faucet ran.

It felt almost intimate as she murmured things only the teen could hear and carried on with just comforting him with her warmth. It wasn't long before Syaoran wiped his mouth and face clean, accepting the paper towel that Sakura leant to him as he recovered his composure. She seemed to ask a question for which the answer made her throw herself into his chest and breaking into tears.

"They are very close," Yukito pointed out to his partner as he noted that he didn't take his eyes off of the pair.

"Just who the hell is that girl?" Touya asked as he watched her reaction. It was Syaoran's turn to comfort the girl, just holding her silently and letting her lean to him. "How is she involved in this?"

"I would have thought you would have asked her some questions while I was gone," Yukito's brows furrowed. He saw his partner look away, a berating look on his face as he heard his partner's comment.

"I started doing the paperwork on my desk," he said in such a low tone that Yukito barely grasped the words. He looked amazed to his partner, noticing that he was currently looking at the floor as if he was looking for a needle. Touya hadn't actually tried to talk to the girl while they were alone. He'd probably been thinking of other things that reminded him of his own family problems.

"Here," he gave the cup to Syaoran as he and Sakura walked to them. They had composed themselves and shared the cup to wet their aching throats.

"Thank you," Sakura looked to Touya while she threw away the empty beverage. They simply followed him as he walked away from the corner and lead them to a closed office door. He knocked before opening the door but didn't wait for an acknowledging before doing so.

Sakura and Syaoran took in the stance of the man seated behind the desk as he didn't even look up and just sighed in resignation. "I think the only person who comes in here without waiting for permission around here is you."

The voice was loud enough to have made many people's ears ache. It seemed that Touya was used to it as he rolled his eyes and placed a finger in his ear as if cleaning it out. It was clearly a show of boredom to his chief's raging face.

"This is the Li kid," Touya motioned for the two kids before sitting himself on a corner of his boss's desk. It seemed like the other man was sputtering in rage while he grinned from his place.

"I swear to whatever is holy in this world Touya that if your father wasn't my best friend, I would have shot you long ago," the thundering comment didn't even faze the younger man who seemed to be looking at his fingernails. He winked at the two kids as he took in their expressions, knowing that this may just help them get over the whole scene that occurred in the restroom.

"You wouldn't abide the mess," Touya pointed out as he saw his partner hide his face in one of his hands as he dejectedly waited for the whole argument to come to an end. "Too much blood."

"Damn right!" exclaimed the older man as he reached behind him for one of the statues of valor he had been given for all his years on the force and poked Touya in the back with it. "Now get off my desk you miscreant."

Touya shrugged in surrender as he held up his hands and walked to one of the walls and leaned into it. He crossed his hands over his chest and observed how the old man smiled at the two kids and drew them into a conversation.

"I am sorry for your loss and the pain you must be feeling," the chief directed his comment to Syaoran, still not sure about the reasons for the young lady to being there with him. "Your whole life has changed in the speck of a moment and you also must contend with the fact that your house was searched and you might be in danger."

Syaoran nodded, knowing that all of this was leading to something. His father was dead and he had no immediate family or people who would take him in. Sakura was actually the only one that he could call family and her place was not a safe haven from those who would most likely look for him.

He was going to be put in charge of the state most likely. He couldn't help the ache that formed in his chest as he recalled how he laughed with his father. They had tried to keep their house a home as much as they could under their circumstances and that was something that he would miss. His father could have broken the law in many people's eyes and probably did things that he shouldn't have done, but he had been a father to him and also 'an uncle' to Sakura. He had protected them both as best as he could when there was no one else who would.

"Oh, hell no!" the protest coming from the side brought Syaoran out of his thoughts. He didn't even realize that he was supposed to be paying attention and didn't know what had prompted the outburst.

"You're not the one being asked for this!" the chief stood from his seat and shouted his own reply. Still, what seemed to be almost as a diabolical grin spread over his face as he looked challenging to the man that was fuming and walking purposely to his superior?

"That's fine," Yukito chimed from his corner as he took in Syaoran's lost look. He was sure that the kid hadn't been paying any attention to what had just been said. Sakura was leaning to the side to fill him in while the chief and Touya were distracted with their argument.

"What!" Touya's scream could surely have been heard at the other side of the planet. "Have you forgotten that we have somewhere to be at tonight?"

"I'm sure the family dinner can suffer without me," Yukito placated him with a smile, his fingers coming to his glasses to adjust them. "Plus, Syaoran probably needs to go home to bring his things."

"I don't have much," the teen growled as he understood that he was being taken care of. At least he could be grateful that he wasn't going to be sent to a home straight out. At least this way he would be able to stay close and be able to do something about the circumstance he had been thrown in. Sakura just kept looking at him, trying to discern his thoughts. She was very perceptive when she put her mind to it.

"Fine," the resignation was in Touya's tone as he ran his hand through his hair. "But if you're not going, neither am I." He said under his breath as he glared at his superior.

"It's not like you like going to those things," Yukito said to his partner as they walked out of the office and the two kids conversed with the chief.

"Hell no," his partner grinned sheepishly. "I don't like to be lectured by grandfather."

"Well, you could stay with us and that should give you an excuse," Yukito pointed out as he walked over to his desk and started to get things ready for departure. It was a good thing that they weren't involved in any other cases at the moment, or he would have had to drop them. He was now officially in charge of Syaoran's care and well being while they figured out what could be done.

"They are probably going to try for him," both of the men looked to the door to see the chief clapping the young man on the back. "Scauffer seems fond of Syaoran."

"I think this must be the first time you've said his name," Yukito said before breaking into laughter. Touya's expression had been so amusing to him that he found he couldn't stop himself. When he finally controlled himself, he found that his partner's glare was murderous. "You do like to get your way."

"Not this time it seems," Touya drawled out as they were joined by the kids. It was then that he caught onto the fact that they were leaving and he would have to deal with the rest of their work for the day.

"I am the one who is allowed to drive you know," Yukito said as he spirited the kids away before Touya let out all of the curse words he could see bursting out. It wasn't really that they were leaving, but more of the fact that he would be stuck doing the menial paperwork he hated so much.

"You two are very close, aren't you?" Sakura asked as they departed the precinct through the back to get the car from the police parking garage.

"We're best friends," the simple answer was all he said. He was sure that both kids would understand what he meant by that comments since they shared the same close connection. Although he was sure that they truly were too young to understand how things could change as they continued to grow and saw more of the world and how it worked. He was also sure that the kids didn't have the same connection nor should he say the same intuition.

"Still," Sakura and Syaoran sat at the back as it was decided that they would stop by his house to get his things, or whatever he could muster to come away from the place. "You two seem to compliment yourselves."

Yukito was impressed at her comment. These two didn't seem to be regular kids that should have other things on their minds at this age. He smiled, knowing that if he said that he'd been reared to be Touya's protector and friend that the conversation would only go downhill from there. But it was his turn; he needed to know a few things that couldn't be read on a file. Especially about the girl that had his partner tense and wondering.

"So, how do you two know each other?" he asked them. "Touya seems to think or maybe he just assumed that you guys were boyfriend and girlfriend."

"Don't tell him this, but that's not actually true. Syaoran and I have just been friends for years and whenever we have a problem, we just go to each other."

"Aren't you guys a bit young to depend on someone your own age?" he dug deeper, seeing on the rearview mirror how Syaoran reacted to Sakura's responses. It looked like he agreed with her assessment. Or, it may just be that he had other things in his mind at the moment and not bother with the conversation.

"His father was a good man. He treated me like family when I needed a haven, but he wasn't perfect. There were times when he just wasn't around and we had to rely on ourselves."

"What about you Sakura? Do you live with your parents?" Yukito didn't know if he had just asked something he shouldn't have since she just clammed up. Her enthusiasm seemed to have left her as she looked out from the window of the car and closed her eyes to the wind that came from the opened window.

"Sakura?" he called her name and saw her eyes shifting. It seemed as if they were communicating silently. He was right.

"Sakura's father is in the Kudomatci Hospital." Syaoran looked at him while still keeping Sakura's face on the corner of his eye.

"Isn't that?"

"Yes," Syaoran soon interrupted him. "He was sent to prison some years ago but then he was diagnosed and taken to a hospital. He's in the last stages of it. Sakura's been staying with his sister for the past few years but she's never been what you call motherly."

Yukito studied her the same way he had done Syaoran some minutes before. This was information that he would store in his mind as he found out more about the girl. He wondered if because the woman didn't care, that she beat or neglected the young girl in any way. There didn't seem to be any obvious bruises, but there were other things that could be going on.

Silence settled over the vehicle as they cruised over the now familiar streets. It didn't look too bad since it was still light outside. Still, the people hurried in the streets avoiding each other's gazes and going about their business while those who loitered snickered and sneered at those who approached their groups.

"I'll be going home then," Sakura announced as they exited the parked car.

"I'll see you tomorrow, right?" Syaoran asked Sakura as she started to wave.

"I'll drop you off at your place, it's no trouble," Yukito offered as he saw the young girl shake her head.

"It's not necessary," she replied before waking to Syaoran and giving him a kiss on the cheek. "I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow. Is one of you guys going to be at the precinct tomorrow?"

"Well," Yukito nodded. "Touya has to pick up some papers that will be there tomorrow morning but it is our day off. He'll be there early and I'm sure he'll give you a ride to my place. Unless you wouldn't mind one of us picking you up tomorrow."

"I'll be there," she left it at that before waving goodbye and breaking into a run.

"She'll be alright," Syaoran reassured the man as they both followed her until she disappeared down the road. "She can take care of herself." He wanted to believe that himself. This would be the first time in a long while that they wouldn't spend their day together.

"Let us see what's left," Syaoran charged forward and worried about his task ahead. He was sure that this would be the last time he would be inside of what had been his home.

"It was no trouble," the woman said to the dark haired man while getting closer and closer. He didn't seem to mind at all with her proximity as he lounged back.

Sakura wasn't truly surprised on seeing that since she had seen any manner of relations between men and women as she had walked the streets of her home. Things were always the same no matter who it was. She was still watching as the scene unfolded. The others around her didn't even pay any attention, as if this was something that was an everyday occurrence.

"Now, when are you going to give me that date you keep promising as a return of my services," she whispered into his ear as the tip of her nose brushed against his temple.

"How about next Thursday," he answered while maneuvering himself out of her way.

"That's a promise Touya, you can't go back on it," the woman laughed as he waved his goodbye and walked away. She turned to talk to the other police officers that were clearly on duty for the day.

"I didn't think you'd make it," Touya pointed out as Sakura waved from the door.

"Something came up," she left it as that as she followed him to his mode of transportation. They walked to a personal BMW with the top off.

"Buckle up," was his only warning before zipping into the streets and for the ride of her life.

She didn't know what had happened. One minute she was putting on the seat belt and the next was a blur. They were inside of a private parking garage that seemed to serve to an apartment complex above.

"You're still breathing," Touya grinned as he saw her disengage the belt with a shaking hand.

"You took me by surprise," she said in return in the same tone. "I'm sure I'll enjoy it more the next time."

"I think I'm going to like you kid," Touya placed his hand over her windblown hair and made it more messy by her estimation.

"I think I'm going to like you when you don't act obnoxious or condescending."

Touya whistled in appreciation as he punched the button for the elevator. "Big words for such a little girl."

"I read."

They both broke into a smile and comfortable silence until he opened the door to one of the apartments. "I brought the visitor."

"Good to see you again Sakura," Yukito greeted her with a kiss and motioned for her to join them at the breakfast table.

"Don't mind if I do," she promptly followed them all and they joined the sitting Syaoran on the table. It was a feast that they all took part of. The joking in between the two adults looked foreign to the two kids that had never seen it before. They were drawn into the conversation many times and had supplied many things about themselves.

Yukito professed the breakfast a huge success since he'd been able to find out many quirks about the kids. He was sure that he could do something that would delight them both. Still, he could keep things as a surprise as they spent the day together.

"I have some tickets for the newly opened aquarium today," he liked the fact that Sakura's face lit up at the mention and how her smile was caught on by Syaoran. Maybe this day would help to draw away the silence that had covered the apartment the night before.

"This is going to be a memorable day," they didn't know that Sakura's pronouncement would turn out to be true.

It had been wonderful. It seemed like Touya was taken with the girl since he had spent the whole time by her side. They had spent it laughing and pointing things out to one another as if competing in outrageousness.

"For some reason, this is what I would picture a sister and brother relationship to be," Syaoran had noted to his companion as they had followed the other two at their own sedate pace.

"Touya would have made a wonderful brother to his sister," Yukito let the comment escape, gaining Syaoran's attention but didn't elaborate further. Syaoran thought it odd, but it may have just been the way he had phrased the words.

"Let's rent some movies to watch," Touya offered as he deviated from the road to the place they usually rented DVDs. "We can all pick a movie to watch."

Sakura looked to the time and nodded to the suggestion. It was close to 6 pm and time was slipping away from her. Everyone went their own way when they went inside. Sakura looked through the whole place before settling on a movie she hadn't seen on a long time. She didn't care if it showed the kid she was, but it was something she wished to see again.

"Is something the matter Sakura?" Yukito asked her as he saw her staring into space. He saw that she had a DVD case against her stomach but she wasn't really smiling as she had those hours ago.

"I don't know if I'll have time to see the movie," she confessed while still eyeing the cases filled with the rentals. "We don't have school tomorrow, but I'll have to go home soon."

Yukito smiled at her answer to his question. "You could stay overnight with us and Syaoran if your aunt doesn't mind."

"She won't," she replied quickly, filled with energy again. She skipped away, possibly to find Syaoran and share her good news.

"One of them will want to drive there so you can pick a couple of your things," Syaoran said to her as they approached Yukito and Touya by the counter. All four movies were given to Touya who paid for the rentals and drove them to Yukito's apartment complex.

"I'll get something done to munch on tonight," Yukito announced as he got off and Touya agreed. Syaoran decided to remain in the car as a companion. Sakura had told him that he should make sure Touya stayed in the car while she went into the house and got one of her bags ready.

He told her to keep the leather bag behind until later and just use the usual one for her sleeping clothes. They had already finished the things that had to be done for school for the day after that. Sakura gave Touya directions from Syaoran's place, not liking the gruff expression that came over his face as he noted the darkness that filled the streets closer they came to their destination.

The car waited idly as she opened the door two houses before hers and cut through the backyards to the tree. Syaoran knew that she wasn't going to let anyone see her coming in or out and leave as soon as possible.

"How does her aunt treat her Syaoran?" Touya's question brought his attention from where Sakura was sure to emerge and into the man that was in the car with him.

"With indifference you could say," he replied. Touya wasn't surprised by the young man's use of the word. It seemed like both Syaoran and Sakura delighted in using words that you didn't typically hear from 12 or 13 year olds.

"Don't get me wrong," he said after he looked at the frown in Touya's face. "She has protected Sakura from the scum of the neighborhood for years. It's just that she doesn't really preoccupy to keep her fed or just asking about her well-being."

"Sakura doesn't look like she minds," Touya pointed out as he looked at his watch.

"Sakura could always depend on me or my father when she truly needed help. She spends a lot of nights in my house and eating our food."

"You don't sound as if you minded," Touya cracked a smile.

"I didn't," the young boy looked to the corner Sakura had disappeared some minutes before to see her walking in a hurried state to the car. She slipped inside, a bit out of breath and clutching a small traveling bag.

They soon drove away, not passing by the house in which men seemed to come in and out of all night long. Sakura looked back as the block disappeared bit by bit. Her breathing hitched for a second as she shook the feeling away. There was nothing to worry about this night. She would be with Syaoran and her new friends.

Touya stood from the bed, yawning as he slipped out barefooted for a glass of water. He saw them curled before the TV. They had watched three of the movies before they noted that both kids had fallen asleep beneath the blankets they had been given as the night wore on.

Touya noted though that Syaoran was awake, just staring at the television while Sakura's head lay comfortably over his pillow.

"She always manages to get my pillow," Syaoran said very slowly and quietly to not wake her. Still, Sakura was so tired that he was sure nothing would wake her right now. He was sure that she hadn't actually slept the night before when she had been in her aunt's place.

They booth looked forward to the image on the television screen. Sakura moved about in her sleep, her arms sneaking around his waist and settling back. She mumbled something under her breath and continued on with sleep.

"You two really are accustomed to sleeping together," Touya handed the kid a glass of water and sat down beside him with his legs crossed under him.

"She's part of the family I had. She was always there for me when I needed company and I was always for her when she needed help. Sakura is like a light that moves with so much energy that you can't help but be absorbed with it."

"I noticed that today," the older man smiled as Sakura slept without a care in the world and took her companion's warmth for her own. "She really is like a breath of fresh air."

Touya looked at Syaoran's expression. He was at that age that was the brink of being transformed from child to man. There was something in his features as he watched Sakura right then that alerted Touya of the fact. Or maybe it was the fact that Syaoran looked very tired suddenly, while his hand caressed her hair.

"I don't really understand it, but sometimes it feels like things are changing," Syaoran broke the silence with this pronouncement. He seemed taken aback by his own words after he said them aloud. Maybe it was because everything had changed drastically and he needed to get this fear out.

"In what way?" Touya tried to be diplomatic. He wanted to see what he was talking about before jumping to conclusions.

"I. Well, I," he stammered out a bit while he acknowledged the fact that he had the older man's individual attention. "I just look at her and feel like something has changed."

Sakura smiled in her sleep while Touya tried to keep himself from laughing. Syaoran just looked so lost, showing in his expression the knowledge that he had said something that really didn't make any sense or elaborate on the point.

"There are some days that I catch her looking at me as if she wants to throw herself at me," Syaoran felt his cheeks reddened as he remembered that she had done so on occasion. Still, he was sure there was something else in her gaze before she wrestled with him that he was sure was there.

"Do you think about kissing her?" Touya asked, biting the side of his cheek to make sure that he wouldn't burst out laughing. Syaoran gawked at him as if he had just sprouted three different heads.

"Not really."

Touya didn't know if he could shout in affirmation. It wasn't an obvious assertion, but not a denial either. "That's not a yes or no."

Syaoran's eyes sharpened as he glared at the man beside him. "I don't know," he wanted to shout that but didn't want to wake Sakura. He certainly didn't want Sakura to know he was having this conversation with Touya. Maybe he was wrong and it was all in his head.

It was probably just the fact that he was noticing that she wasn't straight as a board anymore. She was getting rounder in some places. Her clothing reflected the fact that she was gaining a waist and her chest wasn't as flat as it had always been. He'd woken up many times in the last few months to find her chest against his back, plastered against it, while one of her legs encircled over his thighs, the feet hanging.

"It may be that you are noticing the fact that Sakura's a girl becoming a young woman while you are changing from boy to a man," Touya finally reflected after he saw the rain of thoughts that had gone throughout his face in the last minutes.

"I had a dream some weeks ago after I saw a movie at some friend's place," he gulped quite audibly as he remembered how he had actually started noticing the changes in Sakura's body. "She was there and..."

"Oh, you definitely want to kiss her," Touya said before standing and patting the young man over the head before going back to bed. It was only a few hours before he needed to get up to get ready for work, but that didn't matter. He just hoped that Syaoran would be able to fall asleep once again without agonizing over the thoughts. Whatever was going to happen would happen.

Syaoran in turn squirmed himself down, to settle down as he reached for Sakura's own discarded pillow and settled down as the television droned on in the background. It wasn't easy, but in between thinking and then not making any sense to himself at all, he managed to fall asleep once again.

He woke to find Sakura's face right before him. She still seemed to be asleep as her eyes were relaxed and her breathing was still even. He figured out that he had woken up at the sound of Touya moving around in the kitchen as he got ready for work. Still, the sofa was in the middle so he couldn't watch the youngsters.

Syaoran was thankful for that. Why, because he found himself staring at Sakura's lips. They were a bit parted as she kept sleeping, not really breathing from them. They just looked so there for him to notice. Every time she breathed, her lips moved in rhythm with it.

Her lower lip was bigger than the other. No, that didn't sound right. It looked fuller than the upper one. He noticed the indentations that made the top of her lips, parting it into two symmetrical waves. They were pink. Pink, full, kiss; those were the only words that passed through his mind as he leant forward. Syaoran could feel the thundering of his heart as he got closer. He moistened his lips with his tongue before just taking the plunge and settling his own mouth over hers.

It was different, he reasoned to himself. He didn't feel anything at all. If this was what it was all about, he couldn't understand why everyone else did it. He was about to pull back when her lips moved beneath his and it all changed. He didn't know what happened, but it now felt as if he was burning up. He moved his lips again, and Sakura's own pressed and warmed him.

He pulled back immediately, prepared for her eyes to open and the questions to begin. Questions that he didn't really have any answers for. Nothing happened. Sakura was still sleeping while Syaoran was sure his eyes were the size of saucers. He still felt scorched and burnt by the contact.

Nothing had changed really, Syaoran rationalized as he spent the day smiling at his friend and felt as if his jaw would break. Still, even though nothing had changed, it had really changed.

What he wanted to do the most was bang his head against a hard surface so that his mind would start making sense. He wanted to forget that the whole thing had started because now he couldn't stop thinking about what he had done.

No matter where they were, or what they were doing, he just couldn't stop thinking about kissing and Sakura. And it was all Touya's fault.

Sakura had left to go to the library to get a book and then later go home to pick up some things while he accompanied Yukito on a few errands and later went to the precinct to get caught up on what was going on. No one told him anything, but it seemed like something was happening.

Yukito transferred his guardianship with a smile and a wink as he went shopping for groceries, knowing that Syaoran had been out of his mind two days before as he had picked up food for the weekend and his companions.

Syaoran glared at Touya as the older man just remained sitting on his desk agonizing over a report he had almost finished and didn't even acknowledge his presence. Syaoran really wanted to shout at him, but then at the same time he didn't want to admit to anyone that he had kissed his best friend while she had been sleeping. It was as if he had taken advantage of her.

Maybe that's what had been bothering him. He needed to explore that vein of questioning before finally hitting on what was truly the problem. How could it be that Sakura had somewhat responded to having his lips pressed on hers and not even notice. He was having a problem with conscience and she didn't even know that he was having it.

Things really were changing between them.

Touya pulled him some time later after he had finished his paperwork. It was easy since he was wearing his roller skating shoes. They were walking to the grocery store and then driving back from the precinct to the apartment where Sakura would join them.

"What's the problem Syaoran?" Touya finally asked after he couldn't take the suspense anymore. If he had to glare back at the kid, he wasn't going to hold back.

"You muddled it up," Syaoran groaned as he dejectedly moved his feet to match the pace of the taller and faster man.

"I wasn't the one who had questions, you know," Touya pointed out as he caught the kid by the cuff of his shirt and making him avoid the crack on the pavement that would have thrown him on his ass. "Pay attention to where you are going."

Syaoran didn't like to be chastised but in the position he was in, he couldn't very well rebel to something he had to pay attention to at the moment. He couldn't forget what was going on around him. His father was dead and he was probably next on the list of the people that had ransacked his house.

This wasn't the time to agonize over Sakura and how she was changing in his eyes when she might get involved with this as well.

Touya settled a hand on his shoulder in comfort, giving him strength and the knowledge that he wasn't truly alone in this. "This is normal Syaoran. You are growing up and until you actually understand your feelings, the doubts are going to stay in your mind."

"This is not the time to think about this though, but I still want to thank you for talking to me about this last night."

"I have the feeling I confused you more than you already were," Touya replied with a smile on his lips.

"You're right," Syaoran agreed with the assessment and took off. It felt great to have the wind against his face and the sun shinning bright. This was a wonderful day.

"I'm sorry," he said to a man he bumped into. He almost fell on the ground when the man steadied him. Touya arrived just in time to see the gun and ran at him. He didn't realize that there were more around that knocked him out as he tried to deter the others from pushing the kid into a dark car.

They had no choice but to throw the policeman as well when they heart voices around them. This was a part of the park that wasn't used much, but it was still part of the public domain.

Syaoran kicked out to the man that was closing the door, his shoes hitting him square in the face and breaking his sunglasses. One of the pins of the wheels broke, the round screw getting loose. The man threw out a cursing spree as blood gushed from the side of his face. He looked as if to kill the kid and would have if he hadn't been stopped.

"Let's get out of here," the others shut the door while the guns were out and safety's were off. It was a nightmare that had come true. Syaoran looked to Touya, making sure that he was still breathing and in a position were he wouldn't asphyxiate.

Everything happened too fast. He couldn't see a thing from the windows as the tinted colors wouldn't allow him to even see outside. And then they stopped and pushed into a house by what looked to be the front door. Touya had somewhat recovered but was still sluggish and the goons weren't being nice with their handling anyway.

It was then that he saw the man. The one that controlled most of the drug handling in the city. The one who had known his father. The one his father had stolen from. But he was also the one who had killed him after putting him through a lot of excruciating pain.

They asked him point out and he didn't provide the answers they wanted. The man he had kicked some time before sprang forward to attack but Touya got in the way. They all heard something break, his hand going limp as he didn't even let out a speck of the pain he must be feeling.

The second in command laughed at that and ordered the cop to be taken away to the cell while Syaoran was left alone with them. It was then that he understood just how ruthless these people could be. He was battered, he was beaten, he was cut, he was bruised, he was intimidated, and finally he was warned.

After they got nothing from him, they decided to change prisoners. Maybe the cop would reveal something that would be of some use to them before they killed them both.

Syaoran was taken into a room with one window. He did not know if it faced the front or back or side of the house. He didn't think anyone would see him banging on the glass anyway or they wouldn't have put him here. They took Touya away with a gun to his temple and the promise that if he didn't go they would shoot Syaoran right then and there.

Just as he was taken away, the man lashed out and punched him. It wasn't precisely in the stomach, or his chest; but it was enough to steal his breath away. Syaoran fell to the ground as he fell to the ground, coughing up the blood he had just swallowed from the beating he had just taken. He didn't need to look up to see the look of satisfaction on the man's face as the cut along the side of his face was red and swollen.

The man kicked out for good measure, making sure to hear the grunts of pain and the gasps of breath the figure on the ground tried to take. He was satisfied for now, muttering under his breath in how he was going to make the little bastard talk. And even if he didn't, they would certainly have a good time with what they were hunting. With a sneer the door closed and the silence reigned in.

It hurt to breath. He didn't know how he knew, but he was sure that one of his ribs must have been broken. Something just felt so wrong inside as he remained curled on the floor, staring at the darkening sky that could be seen from the window.

These people were going to kill them both.

He didn't know how long it took, but it finally got to the point where he could sit up and just wince. It was then that he caught the meaning of the man's muttered words as he had left him in this room.

"Sakura," he cried out to himself, not letting them hear her name on his lips if they could be listening outside the door. They knew about Sakura. Syaoran prayed with all of his being that she'd been able to meet Yukito. She had to be safe.

If anything happened to her, it would all be his fault. Nothing else mattered, not his confusion, not his thoughts of punishments for the people that had killed his father, not the thought of the kiss he had stolen the night before. None of those things mattered.

"Please God, please," he fervently prayed as he tried to communicate his feelings with whatever being was watching over them in this cruel world they inhabited. "You can take anything you want from me, but please keep her safe."


	4. An Unexpected Equation

MS

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Card Captor Sakura characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 4: An Unexpected Equation_

"Sakura!" Syaoran shouted as he saw the goons push her in. She stumbled in, her eyes still dazed from the amount of chloroform she had inhaled. She still had enough strength and enough resolve to hold onto her backpack as she felt herself falling.

Syaoran threw himself from the corner he had spent the lass few hours in to catch her. He didn't want her to fall on the floor and somehow hit herself. "You bastards!" he shouted as he managed to get to her in time so that she fell on him. "What did you do to her?"

The demand only gained him contempt from the man as he spit to the two fallen bodies. "The little bitch was troublesome. Just wait until they actually let me go at her as I've wanted to." He closed the door with a bang but not before he winced as he walked backwards.

Syaoran winced as he moved Sakura's head from his screaming ribs and stood up. He knelt before her, brushing the strands of hair that were matted to her forehead and touched her face. It was an urge as he couldn't help himself. He needed to make sure that it was really her. She looked a bit pale, but her breathing was even. He patted her cheeks, trying to see if she would regain consciousness.

"Uhh, muhhh," she groaned as her eyes slit open and Syaoran started to come into focus. Her hands still gripped for the strap of her bag as that was what appeared to be most urgent for her.

"What happened, Sakura?" Syaoran asked her as he helped her forward and she coughed her rasped throat. She could still taste the cloth that had been pressed against her mouth and nose for what now felt an eternity before. She was sure though that it hadn't been more than just around a few hours. Those last few hours had been spent going around the city evading police posts to get to this destination. Her throat was incredibly dry, but that might have something to do with the smoke she had inhaled as well. She had spent those hours rationalizing what had just happened and what she could do about the situation.

"Syauhmmm syaonnmm," she tried to articulate as she gulped down as much saliva as she could to alleviate the dryness. It wasn't actually working at all. She placed her arm on his chest, signaling to him that she needed to catch her breath. She didn't want him to worry and think that something was truly wrong with her.

Her eyes still waved a bit as she concentrated on his shirt. It was then that she noticed the spray of drops of blood that were present in it. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer to her. She rested her forehead against the fabric as he massaged her back with his knuckles.

"You smell of smoke," Syaoran pointed out as he tried to breath without making his ribs hurt like hell. It didn't matter how much he tried, or what different way he tried as it just felt the same in pain. He groaned in pain as she accidentally knocked herself against the broken bone and jarring him. He tried to stay still, feeling the moisture in his eyes as he stopped breathing.

She stilled instantly, her fingers going for the buttons of the dirty shirt and revealing the bruises that were purpling into his creamy skin. The bastards had beaten him up. She couldn't help herself as tears came from her eyes and fell over his pants. This was turning out to be one of the worst days of her life. Or maybe it was more to the people around her.

"Don't cry," Syaoran brought her face up and cradled her head over his shoulder. Her arms came to rest around his neck as she absorbed his warmth and inhaled his presence. They were together now, and that was all that mattered.

The door was opened and an unconscious figure was dropped in. Both teenagers rushed forward as they realized who it was, turning the body and trying to clean him up.

"I can't believe they did this," Syaoran muttered as he tried to move Touya from his place before the door. Who knew what else the bastards that had kidnapped them would throw the next time it opened. There were no other people they could throw in here in the same manner, and that meant that whatever came next would probably involve one of their kidnappers.

Touya's eyes opened and a grin was displayed over his cut lips. He grimaced at the same time at the sting of the bruised skin. He ran his tongue over the cuts and tasted the metallic taste of blood. "Nothing I can't handle kid," he replied as Sakura took a piece of cloth from her backpack and used it to wipe away the dirt and blood that was visible in the cop's visage. He had been in worse situations before when his body had hurt.

"Sakura?" Touya asked as he blinked at the person that was leaning over him. Was he imagining this? There was no way that she would be here with them.

"Don't talk," she managed to say before hacking away at her throat.

"Please tell me she isn't here," Touya asked as he turned his face to Syaoran. They had been together for the past hours in this hellhole and it couldn't be that Sakura had been taken as well.

"Where's Yukito?" he directed the question to her as he braced his hands against the floor and managed to get into a sitting position. "I thought he would be taking care of you."

"Some things happened," Sakura explained as she reached down to her ankles and placed her hand into one of her very long boots. What she pulled out had both guys gaping and staring in silence. They sputtered for a minute as they tried to reconcile with the fact that this wasn't an illusion.

"Where the hell did you get that from?" Touya immediately grabbed for the object with his good hand after regaining a bit of his composure, making sure that the safety was on. He may only have one hand in commission at the moment but he had enough experience with the weapon to handle it properly with the handicap.

"I got it from the guy that brought me in here," she answered, smirking as she remembered the way she had tried to defend herself when they had grabbed her. That man was going to spend a very uncomfortable couple of days.

"And he didn't figure out that you stole his gun?" Syaoran asked disbelieving that it would happen.

"Oh," Sakura searched her bag for the bottle of water she usually had in there. She grimaced as the contents were thrown around the sack. It seemed to have been searched while she had been in the car and brought to this place. "He knows it's missing since I grabbed it, but he didn't find it on my person while he chloroformed me. He must have just assumed that it was lost inside the house with the fire."

"Sakura, what actually happened?" Syaoran asked her as everything she said just made things worse with the picture she was painting. He took the bottle she offered after she had drunk half of it's contents and helped his dry throat.

"She's dead Syaoran, they killed Canare last night when I stayed over with you guys," Sakura knew that she didn't actually have much affection for the woman that had given her a roof over her head for the past few years, but it still hurt to recall the image of her splayed on the backroom with a bullet hole in her head. There had been so much blood.

"I went to get the rest of my stuff after you two had gone to the grocery store with Yukito to help him with the packages after checking in with your superior. I entered through my room and got my things when I heard someone calling me. I thought it was Canare from her room. I went to see what it was since I was sure that she was going to be drugged and incoherent. Next thing I know someone is grabbing me from behind."

"You already had your bag with you," Touya hissed as he pressed the now damped cloth against his face to clean it.

"I kneed the bastard in his balls with my shoes but then another came and while I struggled, he dragged me down the stairs and into the kitchen. The man was still wincing when he grabbed for me again after slapping me," Sakura almost winced as Syaoran lightly touched the bruise that was by her left cheekbone. "I could smell the gasoline that was poured all over the place and by the back door was one guy lighting his cigarette. I kicked out at him. It was only a grace to his hand but it was enough for the cigar to fall on the fuel. All three of us fell down as I struggled and the whole house went up in flames," Sakura raked her fingers through her hair, the smell of smoke still present on her clothing.

"In the scuffle I lost my hairclip," it had been her favorite hair accessory. It had been a gift from her father and something that her mother had owned. She had lost the only thing she had left of the mother she had never known. Taking a deep breath, she continued on, knowing that crying at this moment would not help them in any way. "And the guy misplaced his gun. Both of them dragged me out and carried me to the car while placing a cloth over my mouth and nose. I stopped breathing as soon as I noticed its peculiar smell and just went limp. Still, I had breathed in a bit of the chloroform, I think that's what it was, so while I wasn't truly unconscious, I really couldn't do anything while in the car with all of them around me."

"Sakura, breathe," Syaoran interrupted her since it looked like she was about to hyperventilate, and calmed her down. She had just run through the last sentences as if she couldn't breathe. He'd only caught a couple of words in what she had strung together.

"You are a very dangerous girl, aren't you?" Touya shook his head as he counted the number of bullets the clip had. It was time to think of something. They had been taken for only a few hours where they had already been separated and beaten. These bastards weren't really playing around and someone was sure to wind up dead the next time that door was opened.

"I can take care of myself when I have no other choice," she said while looking at Syaoran directly, as if relaying a private message to him. She looked down at her hands and the cuts in her fingers. "Still, I'm not really good with violence."

Sakura unlaced the high boots and pulled them from her legs, the impression of the gun leaving a red welt against her ankle. "Good thing I have skinny legs," she murmured to herself as she gently massaged the spot.

She lifted the insole from the left shoe, taking the army knife she usually carried with her, and handed it to Syaoran. He was more adept to it than her and she knew that he was the one that would need it the most when it came to defend himself. It was a good thing Syaoran's father had taught them how to use weapons if it ever came available in a situation to them.

"This is a different bag from the one you had two days ago," Touya remarked as he took a close look at the material. It was a very hard leather pouch that looked to be very heavy. It was a very good material that must have cost her a lot of money.

"This was a birthday present from Syaoran and his father that I always use when I need to take things with me," Sakura reached in for a second pair of shoes that would be better than the boots inside of it. "I returned to get this more than to take the rest of my things."

"I wish I had a second pair of shoes," Syaoran remarked as he looked down at the roller skates he had on. It had been an impulse to put on the skates while Yukito had taken his tennis shoes and left ahead for the grocery store. He had done it more to get on Touya's nerves as they followed some time later.

In the end, a wheel had broken free after they had been taken and it was a pain to be dragged around in something that didn't help his situation. Although, these did serve a purpose he supposed. He hoped the man he had hit with them was suffering pain and that it would leave a mark. He glanced sideways to Sakura as she walked a bit in her shoes and nodded.

"I still can't believe that all they are looking for are a package of drugs that your father 'misplaced'. They are opening a can or worms for just a few million worth of merchandise." Touya stood from the floor wincing. He was glad that at least they hadn't broken any of his bones in his legs. The same couldn't be said for his left hand.

"This guy," Syaoran's voice was sharp and angry. "This Simeltson guy has control of over half of the drug trafficking in the city and this 'lost merchandize' is used to show what happens to those that try to cross him."

"Our narcotics guys have been trying to get him for quite some time but without any clear evidence or witnesses nothing could be done. They know that by taking us here, that they are openly defying the police force. Whatever happens here will be unearthed by Yukito." Touya didn't want to mention that in the event that he would be killed or disappeared; his grandfather's family was going to raise hell until they got to the bottom of the truth. There weren't many things that the powerful clan from his mother's side couldn't do with their influence and money.

"Syaoran," Touya looked to see him taking off his roller-skating shoes and staying in just his socks. "The next time they come for us, they are probably going to kill one of us. If they couldn't get the info with violence, then they are just going to bury the whole thing and make everyone involved disappear."

"I still can't believe they brought us to a residence in his name," Sakura muttered as she remembered the name plate that had been by the gates. She remembered the unusual amount of activity that she had glimpsed as they had neared the neighborhood. "For some reason, there are a lot of police cars out there today."

"Did they say anything while you pretended to be out?" Syaoran inquired as he opened army Swiss knife in his hand to keep busy. His middle still hurt like a bitch.

"Something about all the cars being stopped and searched at many points throughout the city which meant they had no choice but to bring me here and that was after spending a lot of time going around the points. I think their original plan was to take both of us and then take us to another location where they could clearly dispose of us without having any connections to this Simeltson guy or your father's death."

"I can't believe it," Touya said to them as he walked to the small window of the room that was sealed. "This is his private residence."

"How are we going to get out of this?" Syaoran asked Touya, knowing that the cop had thought of something that would get them out of this situation when he had been checking the gun.

"We have to try to get out of this room as soon as possible," Touya replied while inspecting everything that he could see outside in the grounds. This was a private residence that although seemingly removed from its neighbors was actually still seen from the main part of the city. He needed to see where the weakest point would be outside of the place. "We're going to need a distraction as well as an attention grabber that will get the authorities here as soon as possible. I may be good with a gun, but I can't do a miracle."

"There are a lot of guys outside on the grounds," Sakura supplied as she recalled everything that she had seen while she had been transported inside of the house. "But surprisingly, there aren't a lot of them inside that I could see."

"There might be a way to cause an explosion that would provide both of those things," Touya reasoned as he began to ground his shoulders. It wasn't only his life on the line but also the two kids that he was supposed to protect from this exact situation.

"Gas lines," Sakura provided as she took a crunchy from her bag and bound her hair. This was a very hot room. She knew that she wasn't the only one that felt the high temperatures.

"We'd probably get killed in the process," Syaoran soon supplied as he saw her eye the gun in Touya's waistband. He had taken some instructions with her with his father some years before about handling weapons. Syaoran wasn't very comfortable with the weapon, but Sakura excelled with it. She needed a weapon of her own.

"Touya," he decided it was time to lay some cards on the table. "We need to get the guard in here where we could both overpower him. He wouldn't actually be expecting us to be armed. Sakura can take hold of his weapon and we'd have a better chance of getting out of here alive with another gun."

"Can you shoot?" Touya inquired as he saw her nodding at Syaoran's suggestion.

"Very well," she smiled as she replied. "I may be only 12 at the moment, but I've never had a problem hitting a mark with a bullet."

"You two are always full of surprises, aren't you?" Touya laughed at the outrageousness of the situation. Here he was, a cop of five years being helped by two teenagers that he was supposed to protect. The girl could take care of herself and everyone else at the same time.

There was something else going on here, he was sure of it. It hadn't taken him long to figure out that Syaoran had something up his sleeve that he wasn't sharing with him. He had actually taken a liking to the boy after their conversation the night before when he watched over Sakura sleep in Yukito's apartment, but he really didn't like to not understand what was going on around him.

"You two could make a formidable pair in whatever you put your minds into," he complemented them both before he walked to the door and pressed his ear against it. There was the creaking of a chair, but no footsteps or words.

For some reason, he shivered involuntarily. That could only mean one thing. He couldn't explain it, but he knew. Somehow, Yukito was near. That meant that he had been able to infiltrate the base and their escape was going to be aided.

A true smiled settled over his face as Touya finally relaxed. He wasn't alone anymore in this problem. His partner was near and nothing could go wrong. That was the feeling and the way things went when they were together. He was always alive, albeit with a few broken bones, but alive. Without any indication, he started banging the door and shouting curses at the man behind it.

"Get us some water your son of a bitch," he started to say while making as much noise as he could. "You can't just starve us here! I'm not going to stop until we get something."

"Shut up in there if you value your life you jackass," the man responded as they heard the scrapping of the chair. He knew how much his boss liked his personal to be quiet. He was always with his mistress at this time of the night. "The boss likes his quiet and I'm not going to get in trouble because you want to be a pain in the ass."

"I don't give a shit!" Touya presumed to make an even bigger racket.

"You asked for it," the lock turned and the man came inside, his gun drawn. "I'm going to shut you up! I don't care if I have to clean up the blood afterwards."

Syaoran tackled his feet while Touya grabbed his head and with as much force as he could muster, he hit it against the wall. The man slid silently to the floor, a blood trail made on the paint job of the wall.

"You are as efficient as ever," a voice came from the door, where a smiling Yukito could be seen with his gun ready. "I was just about to break you out when this little drama played out."

The two kids froze amazed at who had just appeared while Touya gave no indication of being surprised. "What do you have planned?" Touya knew that Yukito had already factored the problem of all of them sneaking out unseen without a distraction before he infiltrated the guards. He probably had an even better way of getting out.

"There's a small detonation device on the attic," he looked to the left hand of his partner. "I see you are incapacitated."

"Nothing that will get in my way of getting out of here," Touya winced a bit as Yukito looked over it and nodded.

"It'll hurt like a bitch but it's nothing that can't be fixed," he took stock of the two teenagers with them, merely raising a brow as he saw Sakura take the guard's firearm from where it had fallen on the floor and place her finger at the trigger.

"It's set to go off in a few minutes so we don't have any time to loose," Yukito looked to the ceiling. "I think part of the roof will collapse and I'd rather not be here when the explosion comes."

Syaoran looked at Sakura while merely gawking at the two men. "Just where the hell did you get that bomb from?" He inquired as they followed him out. They stood silent for a second to discern any change in the atmosphere.

"Here," Yukito reached inside his pockets for a second firearm, took out the safety and handed it to Syaoran. "Just point and shoot."

"I know how to shoot," maybe it was the situation but Syaoran just blurted that out. Sakura almost snickered as he started blushing. She lifted an eyebrow as if waiting for something. "It's just hitting a target head on that's the problem."

Sakura placed her hand in his as he placed his skates around his neck while biting her cheek. She didn't know why she loved to do it. The skates were something he wouldn't leave behind. Just like her bag. They were necessary.

"About the bomb?" Syaoran asked again so that everyone's attention would change from his outburst to another subject.

"We were taught about homemade bombs in the academy we went to in case we ever needed to diffuse one or came across one. It's not that hard to manufacture if you know what you are doing."

"I don't think this is the kind of thing that cops are supposed to do," Sakura lightheartedly scolded them as she ran behind Yukito.

"It's not like they'll ever find out," he fired back in the same tone as they all stopped. "Everyone be careful as we are about to enter the snake's nest."

It was all a blur. There were shots fired as they ran and retaliated against those in their way to freedom. Yukito and Touya took both sides as their chargers followed without missing a step. Syaoran took one out from a door as he brandished his knife as someone got too close to Touya for comfort. The man had to be exhausted and needed all the help he could get.

They pushed through rooms, the deafening sounds of gunfire being the only thing they could listen to as they drove themselves into a wall. "How much time?"

"Ten minutes," Yukito answered as he and Sakura fired back while getting closer to the doors. It was a side entrance that was far from where the explosives where planted.

"Stop!" a commanding voice shouted as they made their way outside. It was the man Syaoran had seen drop Sakura inside of the room they had spent the last few hours in. All four looked to find more than ten guns pointing in their direction.

"You guys have definitely caused enough trouble," he aimed the gun at the girl while he talked, noticing that the boy put himself before her. "How sweet," he said in a very condescending voice. Maybe it would be good to see if he could kill the two kids with one bullet.

"In a few seconds," Yukito said to his group as he glanced at his watch, so that they wouldn't be taken by surprise by what would happen next.

"Kill them all," the man said to the group before grinning and pressing the trigger.

A loud explosion rang out. The house shook and the earth seemed to tremble beneath their feet. All four figures scrambled as shots rang out and fire broke out inside of the mansion. They ran in the confusion, taking down as many as they could as they ran for the cover of the trees.

"I can't believe we're still alive," Touya said to his companions as he leaned against the trunk of a tree and tried desperately to regain his breath. That was almost impossible as he realized that he'd been shot. It burn like hell, but it seemed to have been a grace and not something else that would make things much more difficult.

It wasn't long before the sirens of the firefighters and police cars came to rest before the gate and easily bypassed security to get into the chaos. Men were strewn about as they tried to follow procedure and protect themselves as well. It was a chaotic scene. Mr. Simeltson came outside to watch amusingly as the public servant figures inundated his property.

"Why Scauffer, why are you, the chief of police in here?" he wryly asked as he cordially gave his hand to the man. Neither of them was stupid not to know why both of these men knew who each other was. It wasn't like the chief hadn't known that this man was very powerful and careful of his dealings as he went about to gain more power and control of the underworld he dealt within.

"We received an anonymous tip of a bombing in this area and it seems like it was no idle threat," he answered in return. This would give them a chance to be able to get through the property but he was sure that such a careful man wouldn't actually use his private residence for something unlawful.

"It seems like someone has it out for you," they continued to talk while the flames were fought and the scene was almost cleared while smoke prevailed.

"I need to get back in there," Syaoran said to both men as he winced a bit at his feet and started to walk away.

"This is what it's all about, right?" Touya remarked as he glanced at the teen and the roller blades that were hanging around his neck.

"He's not going to get away with killing my father," Syaoran shrugged after his response and walked away. Both men knew that with the chaos that still went on, finding Syaoran who was supposed to be in custody of two policemen and in this state was enough to stir things up and cause a lot of questions to be asked.

Sakura grimaced as she disengaged her finger from the trigger and handed the weapon to Yukito. "I might like guns and feel comfortable with them but I'm not particularly fond of these," she eyed it before she gave a wave and followed Syaoran in. "I'm going to help him make his case in there."

Neither of the two men tried to stop her as she skipped to the house with her bag slung over her shoulder. "That's an unpredictable girl."

"You can say that again," Touya watched her closely as she entered the door without any problems. "I don't know if it has something to do with hanging around with the kid and her own circumstances; or if she was just meant to be a fireball."

"I think it's because she's very strong and is not afraid to show it," Yukito came to his partner's side and helped him slide down to the dirt as he sat. "You're going to need a cast for your arm and some stitches for your leg."

"True, but at least I'm still in one piece," he opened his eyes as Yukito settled beside him and rested his head against his own. "You on the other hand have the devil's own luck."

"True," Yukito sighed deeply as he let go of the gun Sakura had given him and placed it beside them. He looked into Touya's dark eyes and was glad that he could keep the man alive for as long as he could. Maybe some of his own luck was rubbing onto Touya, which would be a good thing. No matter the skirmishes they found themselves on, Touya was the one who always managed to get hurt while Yukito got by with less than a scratch.

"Come here," Touya used his good hand to tilt his head before placing a kiss on his partner's lips. It felt good to be alive and be able to do this again. The contact was enough to satisfy him for the moment. They remained in an embrace as long as it took for him to calm Yukito's fears for his life. He was the protector but he was also his best friend and confidant. And then of course there was the fact that he only had enough energy left for this as every bone in his body hurt because of the happenings of the day.

"That kid has got to be bad luck," he growled as Yukito's warmth calmed him. "At least this is over."

"You didn't have to stay here," Syaoran said to her as he reached into his roller-skates and took two bags filled with white powder. He was sure that they had his father's fingerprints as well as some of the men that were outside dealing with the police. "He'd been careful with the handling of most of the packages, but if some of his fingerprints are on them, it wouldn't be too much of a problem.

"I'm also a part of this, "she reminded him as she reached inside of her bag after she emptied it and opened a hidden zipper. The rest of the bags that had been left in Canare's house two days before came into view. They placed them in an inconspicuous room where they would seem hidden but clearly not.

"Kidnapping, fires, drugs, interrogation and firearms," Sakura mused out loud as she took one of Syaoran's hands and placed it over her shoulders as she helped him lean on her. "I'm sure that one of these goons used the same guns that will point to all of the deaths that have happened." She shivered involuntarily as the scene of Canare's body slumped against the wall and the blood spread everywhere came to her.

"This has been a nightmare," Syaoran murmured as he placed an arm around his chest as the broken rib still hurt. He looked away from the pain that made her eyes go glassy so that she could compose herself before him. It still wasn't the time to let go and let everything that had happened sink in. There was still the last piece to be placed.

"I don't think we're going to be able to wake up," Sakura replied as she hugged him while walking to where all the policemen were coming from. "I am also now without a home."

Syaoran's fingers threaded through her hair as the crunchy had unraveled itself from the bound. He placed a kiss on her forehead as she burrowed deeper into him. "You won't be alone Sakura, I promise. No matter what happens, I'll always be with you."

She smiled weakly as the adrenaline rush started to fade in both of them. It was then that exhaustion started to show. They came to be surrounded by emergency response workers and policemen that rushed them out from the room to get medical attention. They refused to let go of each other's hands as they were shuffled around the scene.

"My, my," Scauffer grinned as he saw the two teenagers he had meet two days before in his office coming from inside the house. Simeltson had a grim expression as he saw the expression in their faces. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Kidnapped," answered Sakura as she took the drink she had been handed by the officer that was checking her over. "I'm sure you'll find whatever you need inside that house that can prove it."

Sure enough, officers raced outside with their personal belongings and the packages they had found. "Explanations?" the chief directed his question to the man beside him whose eyes reflected something akin to amusement.

"I'm sure my father's prints are on those," Syaoran supplied as was taken into the ambulance.

"Who would have thought?" the chief commented as he saw the girl climb into the vehicle with their belongings as they were taken to the hospital. "It seems like you were getting too cocky," he conversed with the man beside him who knew there was no way out of this. "Two teenagers will be your downfall."

"It's probably more than that," Touya said in high spirits as he walked slouched over Yukito's shoulder.

"I was wondering where you two had disappeared to," the chief smiled at his two men before reaching for his cuffs and doing his job. "Mr. Simeltson, you are under arrest for the possession of drugs," he said as soon as he tasted the substance and confirmed it. "I'm sure that more charges will pop up as soon as you are booked and processed. Good thing you have that lawyer on retainer."

Touya protested somewhat as he was ushered into an ambulance, while Yukito watched helplessly as he was given the job of explaining what had just happened to their chief.

"You're going to need to stay here for a couple of days," Yukito informed Syaoran as he sat beside Sakura and the young man gave him his complete attention as he lay on the bed. Sakura had been treated her cuts and bruises but nothing overly serious so that she had to remain overnight. Touya wasn't so lucky.

"I just need to stay here overnight and then I can go back home," Touya seemed to be gloating about it. He just wanted to get home and throw himself into his bed. He'd probably go back to work right away but at least now he was done with this babysitting assignment.

"Sakura," Syaoran called her to gain her attention. "What have they said to you?" He was referring to the police officers and child affairs that had been waiting for them as they arrived at the hospital.

"I have no relatives that can take me in, so I'm going to be placed in foster care," Sakura managed to say before she had to fight the urge to cry. She didn't want to cry in front of them. Syaoran was okay because she'd done it since she'd been little and the situation seemed overwhelming, but she didn't want to show such a weakness to the other two men.

"I'll probably go the same route then," Syaoran took her hand and squeezed it. "Remember what I said, okay?"

"I know," she took a deep breath and composed herself. "We'll get through this. We always do."

"Hey Yukito," a very good looking nurse came into the room and greeting everyone in it. "Visiting hours are over, although I suppose you know." She winked in his direction as she looked at both of the patient's charts. "With all the times Touya's been here I'm sure you know the inside workings of this place."

"Very true," Yukito smiled as he said his goodbyes and took Sakura home with him. The paperwork hadn't been filed yet so she was still in his care. "We'll see you guys tomorrow morning."

The nurse kept them company for an hour before she left for the rest of her shift. It left the room in silence as neither of its occupants said a word.

"Do you think there's any way that Sakura and I can be placed in the same home?" Finally, Syaoran had voiced the question that was burning inside of him. There was only so much that he could do before he couldn't go over a wall between them.

"I truly don't know," Touya replied truthfully as he read very accurately the young boy's thoughts. "It's not impossible though."

"I don't think I can leave her alone," Syaoran's voice cracked a bit as he muffled the groan of frustration that so desperately wanted to come out. He didn't even want to think about not being with her. He didn't think he could actually be without her smile and reassurances. It was very true. He needed her as much as she probably needed him. Maybe even more. They were the pillars of strength of one another and the only reason they had been able to keep themselves apart from the world they had been living in.

"Don't you have anyone that can take care of you?" Touya asked as he looked away from the obvious tears that were forming in Syaoran's pupils. It was an unwritten rule that he should look away when the young and growing man beside him needed to compose himself.

"My father never talked about his family so I wouldn't know."

"I'm sure that something will come your way," that was the only thing he could offer. Touya had nothing else that he could say to the younger man. The hours stretched and the night went on. As a boy slept, a man stared unseeingly at the ceiling as if hoping to discern the secrets of life and solve all of the mysteries in this universe they seemed to be part of.

Syaoran was all alone in the room. Touya had been discharged early in the morning before either Sakura or Yukito came to visit. He had promised to come back with some edible food as soon as he could get his desk straightened out and his meeting with the chief over with.

The television had only provided a bit of distraction as the day went on. It was close to 3 in the afternoon when the door to the room opened and Sakura ran to his side. She was smiling at him as if she had just won the lottery.

"Morning," she cried happily as she placed her arms around his neck and hugged him. "I'm so happy."

"I can see that," he replied and couldn't help but feel that the world was a much brighter place. Nothing mattered but her smile which was such a contrast from the day before. "May I know why it is that you are so happy?" He tucked a hair behind her ear as she bounced around the room like a ball full of energy.

"We're not going to be separated," she said breathlessly before taking his hand in hers and squeezing with all her might.

One less thing he needed to trouble himself about. A true smile appeared on his face this time. He pulled her to the bed and settled her beside him as he embraced her. "Nothing could keep us apart." He finally said with a conviction that spoke of emotions he didn't truly understand.

"Hey, hey, hey," a few minutes later Touya's voice filtered through the happy atmosphere as he placed a fast food bag on the chair and glared at the two kids. "You two better stop sleeping on the same bed before you move in. You are too young to be doing this kind of thing."

Sakura laughed as she unlatched herself and stood. Syaoran just got confused. "What?" he finally managed to say when Yukito emerged from behind his partner.

"We're all going to be living together from now on," he explained further as he sat beside his charge. "You're going to have your own rooms too so I think sleeping on the same bed is something that would not be necessary."

"But, your apartment," Syaoran tried to rationalize how the hell they were all going to have their own rooms when the place they had stayed over, in what seemed eons ago, had only two bedrooms.

"My house has five bedrooms," Touya looked in between the two kids. "And while I know you two are very close to one another, it's going to be very weird letting you two sleep in the same bed. You're way too young," he said while glaring at Sakura. "As your guardian now, it is your duty to obey me."

"I think I just missed something," Sakura replied out loud as Yukito merely chuckled and conversed with Syaoran.

"I think my house won't survive this," Touya said to himself as the kids laughed and Yukito managed to get a kiss from Sakura in the process. His chest felt tight for some reason so he rubbed it as he was included in the conversation. Seeing the two kids laughing was enough to let him know he had made the right decision. He could afford it, and maybe then the silence that ran rampaging through his house would be no more.

He had just gained himself two kids to take care of. Still, he couldn't help but feel elated. Something else had come of this as well. He had just finally gotten Yukito to move in with him. After all the battles he'd had to wage, something finally happened that would help his cause. That was very sweet indeed.


	5. Routine

MS

The bold word or phrase denotes a change in scene. This is more of a transition chapter, so I hope you'll forgive me overusing them.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the card captor Sakura characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 5: Routine_

He didn't know why, but Syaoran felt very warm as he trashed around in his bed. The covers were to the sides as he placed a hand over his forehead and pressed his bangs away from his eyes. The room was dark and silent as the ticks of the clock resounded in the background.

Syaoran's eyes settled over the whole space. This was his new room in Touya's house. They had finally moved scarcely 3 weeks before and he still had trouble falling asleep. It took a bit to get used to new surroundings when it was such a drastic change from what he was used to.

He went from living at a house that was unpainted and creaky to one that had all the commodities in the world and smelled of unused furniture. Sakura shook her head at that particular description he gave, but Syaoran wasn't repentant of how he saw it. Touya certainly had a lot of money to afford such a place. But then he shouldn't be surprised since Yukito had explained to both him and Sakura in how Touya had come to own the mansion.

This wasn't a mansion by many people's standards, but definitely by his. Especially since everything was state of the art and new compared to what Sakura and he was used to.

Sakura. Maybe that was the true reason for his insomnia.

It had been over a month since the kidnapping but neither he nor she could easily forget it. The nightmares always plagued him. There was a lot of what ifs in that situation that rolled over and over in his dreams. It had been another situation that he wasn't going to forget for the years to come. He begrudgingly had thanked Touya for keeping silent over various things that took place in the kidnapping attempt. In essence Syaoran had been the one to have drugs in his possession, not their kidnapper, but that had just stayed between the four of them.

Syaoran's eyes narrowed as he focused on the door to his room. It was swinging inside and he could barely contain his grin. He was a bit amazed that she had lasted as long as she did.

Sakura noiselessly approached the bed and slid beneath the covers, inching little by little to his side. Syaoran just stared at her face silently as she burrowed her head into the pillow and let out a huge sigh. Syaoran bit his lip to keep from chuckling at her expression. Sakura just hit him lightly over his arm before turning with a huff and settling once more.

"Problem sleeping?" he finally asked as he hedged closer to her. She had practically stolen the sheet from him.

She mumbled something beneath the sheet and pillow that he couldn't make out. "What was that?"

"The bed is too big," she said once again.

"I know what you mean," Syaoran looked to the dark ceiling as shadows flickered through slits by the window blinds. "King beds in each and every room. Touya clearly likes spacious bedding."

Sakura giggled and turned to him again, getting closer as if conspiring. "He is a very large man that would take much space. Plus, you see all of these pillows," she fingered the lace on the end of some of them as the fluffed objects littered near the headboard. "He must certainly like a lot of support."

"Or just sitting in bed," Syaoran supplied.

Sakura observed him quietly for a few minutes. Syaoran blinked as he didn't know how to react to this. She was almost searching for something. What it could be he had no idea.

"You do know that Touya and Yukito are somewhat more than friends, right?" she added the last word to make sure he understood her.

"Really?" an eyebrow shot up as he mockingly answered to her query. "I don't think most people could misinterpret the way that Touya looks at him at certain times."

"I have an urge to hit you again for some reason," Sakura huffed as she started turning and he finally chuckled. He grabbed her by the shoulders and dragged her back to him, his fingers searching for her waist and tickling spot.

Sakura started squirming away as she saw his intent and ended up kicking away from him and falling out of the bed. She squealed before hitting the ground with a thud and almost hitting her head hard. Syaoran leaned over the side of the bed, his arms falling to the floor from the edge of the bed as he grinned at her still position.

"Do you think they heard that?" she whispered to him as she fished one of her arms from underneath her body and simply lay on her back.

"I think the old man with poor hearing that lives by our school heard you," he smiled at her groan and proffered a hand to help her sit up. Sakura's eyes narrowed into slits as her devious thoughts were reflected on her pupils for him to see. Syaoran was resigned for what he knew was to come.

It wasn't long before he had fallen to the floor as well. His breath was knocked out by the fact that he landed partially on her and a jabbing elbow found itself into his stomach. He rubbed the spot while grimacing and Sakura just stayed on the floor beside him.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked her as he noticed she didn't even smile at having pulled him down. "You seem to be lost in thought."

"I can't get her face out of my mind lately," Sakura answered, knowing she didn't have to elaborate. She'd already told him about everything that had happened that night when her house had been set on fire. Canare's face had held one of the expressions of terror that ingrained itself into someone's mind and could never be forgotten. It wasn't as bad as before, but it was something that still bothered her.

"I know," Syaoran turned to the side and opened his arms to pull her into an embrace. This was all that he could do for her right now since he knew that it was something that no one would ever forget. "I can't stop seeing my father's battered body on that slab either."

"I'm sorry," she said to him while grasping at the t-shirt he wore. She took his hand in hers and intertwined their fingers. Warmth permeated through their palms offering comfort and reassurance to them both. They both understood what it was all about.

"Isn't it a bit late, or should I say too early for you guys to be making such a ruckus?" Touya's drawling voice came from the doorway as he leaned against it with his arms crossed. Both teens looked at him a bit wary.

Touya lazily waited for them to speak up and stop their perusal of him. He had been startled awake some time before for some reason and heard them both yelp as he had made his way back from the kitchen with a glass of water.

He shifted his toes as the cool floor came in contact with his bare feet. He still had a bandage around his thigh from the shot he received the weeks before, as well as scrapes and bruises that hadn't faded and he had just further aggravated. Touya was never one to stand still.

The kids just looked at him from the floor without answering him. "Alright. Either get in a bed or start making coffee 'cause if you guys don't settle down, I'm not going to get to sleep."

"It sucks to be a light sleeper, doesn't it?" Sakura said to him as they both stood. "I'm going to stay here tonight." She informed him, waiting for the raise of the brow and his reasons for opposing to it.

Touya just nodded as he closed his eyes and yawned. "Fine, just go to sleep," he mumbled to himself as they scrambled onto the bed. "Sakura, if your bed is too big, then I'll be sure to buy you some huge plush animal that will take half the bed at least. Stop using it as an excuse to go into this delinquent's room. Good night."

The door closed with a sharp click while his retreating steps could be clearly heard. "How long do you think he was listening?"

"The whole time probably," Syaoran replied with a groan. "Touya's a pretty nosy bastard."

"Shhh," she shushed him and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Let's go to sleep. I'm suddenly very tired."

Touya groaned low as he threw himself onto his bed and almost dropped to sleep in an instant. It was way too early in the morning to actually have working brain pathways. "They'd probably be better with some dogs to distract them."

He smirked at the thought and dropped like a stone. Those pills definitely worked like wonders. The thought was completely forgotten when he opened his eyes at the glaring sun the next day.

"**Touya** Kinomoto you say," there was a bit of laughter as the old man shook his head at the reports. It was just like him to be amused by the younger man's antics.

"I don't think you should feel so amused," Scauffer growled from his seat as he took the amusement personally. "That boy is responsible for all of my grey hairs."

"He certainly seems to have kept things lively here for you," his cough was the only sound as he perused over the rest of the report. "Half the things he does are grounds for dismissal but somehow he gets away with pulling all his stunts."

"I would say Yukito is the one responsible for that," the chief grimaced at the accurate assessment. "He's the sole reason there's some professionalism associated with their police work."

"You don't sound too put out by that statement," the sharp eyes of Misaki Amamiya pierced his old friend forcefully. Scauffer squirmed under that direct stare before picking a cigarette.

"He's one of the best," he had to admit the truth and that's all it came down to. "His work in the Simeltson case has earned him a commendation by the mayor, as well as the discerning eye of many agencies of law enforcement that have a higher ranking than us."

"Do you think he would ever go to work at another agency?"

"It all depends on his ambition," Scauffer leaned to his chair, his eyes closing as he pictured the black haired young man ascending through the ladder. "Staying here would mean a long time would have to pass, as well as a lot of work for him to reach a good ranking."

"The question is if he desires that," Misaki pondered as he thought of his grandson. "Has he asked you about it?"

There was no need between them for the actual topic to be named. Misaki abhorred the subject, but knew he had to approach it.

"Not for awhile," Scauffer felt his eyes glassing as he thought of one of the biggest failures of his career. "It's as if he hasn't thought of it. No one has reported that he's been digging for information on that case since two years ago."

"He's not one to give up," Misaki had the papers disappear into his bag as he started to take his leave. He didn't have that much time to spend here without having to answer some questions. "I'd expect he's been covering his tracks pretty well."

"He needs to find her body," Scauffer could understand Touya's need for closure, and they had all been denied such. "The anniversary is coming up."

"It's always too soon," Misaki whispered as they parted ways.

"**Rise** and shine," the shout had Syaoran sprinting from the bed, missing quite a smash against the bed. "I know it's a Sunday but you're not allowed to waste the whole day away."

"Touya," the name was said with dislike and accompanied by a groan as the older male smirked from his perch beside the door. "There are chores as well as homework to complete if you want any free time for yourself."

Syaoran kept his opinions to himself as Touya left the room. He threw himself against the bed, groaning at the injustice of it all, his arm thrown haphazardly over his face to shut out the light. He'd been trying his best to recall the nice dream he'd been having, his mind grasping tendrils of it before it eluded him completely.

It was becoming a habit, to have Touya interrupt the dreams he wished to continue. On those nights he woke in a cold sweat, the image of the cold barrel of a gun pressed tightly against his temple while Sakura remained unmoving by his foot, broken and sobbing, he never got such relief. The injustice of it all had him cursing.

"Come on sleepyhead," the object of his thoughts poked her head through the open doorway before sauntering away to the breakfast table. If he wasn't quick enough there wouldn't be enough of Yukito's wonderful breakfast for him to eat. That spurred him to action as all other things disappeared. He had no time to contemplate such things.

He was failing his language class rather badly, and if he wanted to take advantage of the free day Yukito had afforded the pair, then he knew he had no chance of actually passing the test the next day. The battle at the table was short of a massacre. Yukito congratulated him on the use of the word while Sakura and Touya contently berated him from the other side of the table.

"I don't know why you're in such a good mood," he decided to have some payback for her abandoning him to side with the bullying man. "If I recall you're not doing too well on your algebra, are you?"

"That was low," she threw him a glare that had him reevaluating his life before she stood from the table in one of her moods. "Maybe instead of having you tutor me I'll let Andrew help me as he offered."

He rolled his eyes at her threat, contently rubbing his stomach as the name perked Touya's interest. The older man's eyes were clouded as he sharply observed his charge as the children bickered. He was getting rather overprotective of the young lady by his side, in ways that scared him somewhat as it recalled certain things in his life he'd rather not dwell on. And when all was said and done, he did not dislike the male teen as much as he showed, except for the fact that he was aware of the pair's age and their predilections to one another.

"Andrew wants to date you," Syaoran replied in an exasperated tone as if he was explaining it for the thousandth time. "His grades are as bad as yours."

"Your comments are not helping your situation," the voice of reason in any moment spoke by his side as he replenished his orange juice. His suffering sigh had them taking a break from their argument. "Sakura has already promised to accompany Touya to work today as mandated by our caseworker, and you'll just have to suffer through my tutoring by yourself."

"Trust me kid, you have the better end of the deal," Touya remarked as Sakura stomped on the older man's feet in revenge to his unkind comment. His dramatics at her poor attempt to injure him had everyone in the room laughing.

"Do you think she'll really do it?" Syaoran couldn't help but inquire to Yukito while alone.

"I'm impressed," Yukito ruffled the teen's hair playfully as they conjugated verbs. "You managed to hold out one whole hour before voicing what's been on your mind."

He kept his eyes on the young teen as his face blazed in embarrassment at having been caught. "You always know what's on my mind."

"No," he corrected in reply. "Many times I keep wondering over how to approach you, but it's plain as day that her threat really bothered you. That was easy to spot."

"She's so beautiful you know," Syaoran groaned before slamming his head against the table rather loudly. "Everyone knows we live together so they assume we're like brother and sister. I'm starting to think Sakura thinks that too."

"Aren't you too young to be bothering about such things?" his grey eyes shined in amusement as Syaoran gave a 'are you serious' stare. "My mistake," his hands came up in a gesture of mock surrender. "You're not that bad to look at either Syaoran," he studied the young teen before him for a bit before nodding at his assessment. "I'm sure you have your share of admirers."

"There are always girls in any school doing those things," Syaoran didn't even give it a passing thought. "But that's another thing she doesn't seem to notice."

Yukito's laugh at his tone of voice had the teen lumbering to his feet so he could sulk in peace in his room. He wasn't going to be ridiculed by anyone. He had his pride too.

"I'm laughing because you just don't know how to read things yet Syaoran," Yukito backtracked to salvage the situation; he hadn't been able to help himself at how despondent Syaoran had sounded. "From an older man to another," he knew the comparison would help assuage the boy's ruffled feathers. "I will tell you that Sakura only said that to fire back to your comment. You're at the top of your classes with exception to languages and Sakura's too smart to cut off her own nose just to spite yours."

"She's stubborn though," Syaoran took his seat back at Yukito's side knowing that he'd been placated. "She would do it just to spite me because she knows I can't stand Andrew."

"And why is that?"

"Because he's an ass that keeps staring at Sakura and he thinks I don't know what's going through his mind when I catch him doing it," he growled as he picked up his pen to continue his work.

"Don't worry too much about it Syaoran," Yukito pointed out a mistake so he would think on it while it was fresh in his mind. "You're still her confidant and dearest friend; she'd forgive you almost anything."

"Almost anything?"

"She's also a girl, so she's entitled to change her mind. I've never professed to understand a girl or woman's mind."

"I don't think I ever will," they commiserated for a bit before going back to the worksheet.

**Touya **played around with his pen for a bit as he observed the young girl do odd jobs throughout the office. His tie was already loose, with his jacket over the back of his chair as his holster and gun were at easy reach if it was needed.

The bundle of energy was endearing herself to each worker in the office. Each Sunday it was the same routine. They would arrive at nine and get to work. Touya was usually swamped with papers he needed to fill out in reports of the whole week that Yukito left behind for him to do. The chief was always off, so it fell on them all to not let their work pile up. Duo Maxwell was on hand just in case the pair needed to go out for a call.

"I think we're getting too used to her around here," the brunette's long braid slapped against the desk as he perched himself over one of its corners. "She caught on to the work here so quickly everyone is leaving more work for her to do so she doesn't disappear on us."

"You do know the cookies she brings with us every Sunday are Yukito's work, right?"

Duo laughed as he picked up one of the paperweights that littered the cluttered desk. "We know, but we appreciate the thought of her actually bringing it. You guys have been working in this department for three years and it took an outsider for you guys to actually contribute some sweets to the team."

"Contribute?" Touya rolled his eyes as he rounded up on the smiling man. "I don't see anyone else around here bringing anything. Contributing my ass."

"Your ass is rather big," he countered before running for his life as Touya gripped the pen in an offensive stance. Even with just a pen, it was better not to be in his bad graces.

"Touya," his connector rung from an operator at central command. "We have a ten-fifty."

He was instantly on his feet, grabbing his gun and jacket as Duo did the same at his desk. They both approached the hurried Sakura, seeing her stop at their stances almost immediately.

"I can't go, can I?" she questioned to make sure as Duo clipped her on her jaw playfully.

"Richards will supervise your work," his loud voice got the policeman's attention from her own work. She nodded to them before going back to it. "Follow her instructions if needed and we'll be back as soon as possible."

"Be careful," she said to them both with a smile as the left the prescient.

As they got to the scene, they were very glad that Sakura would not have a chance to see it. "This is sadistic work, isn't it?" Duo remarked as they simply studied the scene from outside the perimeter. "Shall we?"

Touya nodded as they got to work on the scene. The four hours seemed like a lifetime before they returned. It was getting rather late in the afternoon, and Yukito would be bringing Syaoran so they would pick up Sakura from her work while Touya finished his full 20 hour shift.

It took one look from his partner for him to realize they had a new case. Duo distracted the teens by inviting them to some scoops of ice cream for his break.

"It's bad work Yukito," his expression gave him most of the details before he slid the preliminary report his way. "I have a feeling this isn't just one job."

"You're usually right with those feelings," his fastidious eyes got most of the details down before they spoke. "This isn't going to make our lives any easier."

"We'll manage somehow," he gave his partner a supporting hand over Touya's knuckles, only to have him thread his fingers through his. The warms of their palms calmed the aggressive Touya, giving him time to concentrate on saying his good byes to their charges as they left.

**The** next two months was full of trial and error for them. They settled into a routine of chaos, in how Yukito described it as they settled into a new life. Sakura had managed to wrangle a dog out of Touya, who had always sworn to not have a pet. With that came a new housekeeper that would be able to keep up with all four of them. The old lady was easy to get along with them and their strange schedule most of the time.

Syaoran improved in his struggling class, his tutoring sessions with Yukito continuing every time they could manage it. Before long, he was proficient enough to grasp sentences as they were spoken to him.

Sakura was a bad influence on the other hand; she always got him on one project or another on their free time which had them cutting back on their studying. Yukito and Touya's work did not interfere too much on their time either, while they both wished their schedules would get smoothed out to a better time of the day.

The young pickpocket had remanded her ways somewhat, the need to steal and skimp on money done away with. They'd even visited her ailing father which had lifted her spirits considerably. They were making weekly trips which buoyed the dying man's spirits and endeared the pair further into their lives.

"**Why **exactly can't we go?" Sakura queried again as she observed Yukito put the final touches on his dressing tux. He made quite the picture all dressed up, with a small white rose bloom at his lapel.

"Because you weren't summoned," Touya growled from the doorway, his own preparations done.

"The word is invited Touya," Yukito corrected him quite exasperated by all of his grumblings.

"Summoned," Touya fired back while he took in his partner's dressing style. Sakura merely rolled her eyes thinking that they should just kiss in front of her and get it over with. She wasn't blind to the fact that both men found each other quite attractive and has a relationship of sorts.

Instead she found herself the object of attention when Touya rounded up on her. "Don't you have some homework to do for school? If the gaki keeps mentioning your problems with math then you need to spend more time with a book instead of loitering around a bed."

"That's because you wished you were the one on it while pulling him in it," she murmured to find both men look at her. She wondered if she'd said that really aloud.

"What was that?" Touya asked her, noting the light blush that was settling quite quickly on Yukito's cheeks.

"I'm going," she let out a suffering sigh and dragged her feet all the way to the door.

"And please be nice to Karen," Touya shouted from further into the room. "She needs to study for her test."

"Why exactly do we need a babysitter?" she sounded insulted, and truly was. She and Syaoran were old enough to be trusted not to burn the house down if left alone for more than five minutes.

"Because I don't trust that gaki to not burn the house down while I'm not here just because he has it in for me," the other adult and child made an exasperating noise at his reply. If that's what he said then they weren't going to correct him. It was easier to let him stick to his own stories instead of changing his mind.

The house was too quiet for her tastes when she finished her work for the day. She went looking for her partner in crime to find him in the kitchen right next to their babysitter. He was studying again. He'd been pushing himself a lot since they'd transferred to a new school within their district. She knew he felt indebted to Touya and Yukito for taking them in and giving them an opportunity to a different life than what they'd had up to now. Sakura brought sunshine and happiness to all around, and Syaoran drove himself to excel on every class and activity that he could so they knew he was accomplishing something.

She felt at a loss. She was loosing him, and she felt like the only one that experienced that feeling. She never had him to herself anymore and it hurt her to think that a distance kept growing between them. She didn't disturb them, hoping to relieve this ache with the new puppy.

She cradled the bundle of energy in her arms as soon as she stepped outside. She'd noticed that he hadn't even given her a glance when she brushed by him. The pup licked her face, whining when she refused to let go of him so he could jump circles around her like he wanted. She couldn't help but giggle at his antics to get her spirits up. His wagging tail felt like a whip as she reached for one of the balls.

His yips of excitement bolstered her up, as she threw the ball at him. It was a game of tug as he happily raced after it, only to plop down and refused to give it to her. After getting thoroughly exhausted with the endeavor, she lay completely against the freshly cut grass. The small dog sat happily at her side, gnawing on the ball.

Sakura looked to the dark sky. She couldn't see any stars. She wishes she could so her thoughts would stop revolving on her current dilemma. She was constantly at Syaoran's side, but had never felt so alone. He had his own goals to accomplish and she felt left behind, as if she hadn't been included at all. He was going to transfer to an advanced program on the coming semester and studying occupied his time much more than his childhood friend.

She curled into a ball as she dragged the dog closer. His objections soon quieted as she settled him over her body, her hands playing with his growing ears. "You're easy to please," she remarked as he rolled over her so she could also rub his tummy. He wriggled when she tickled him, laughing when he shot out in a run as soon as he could escape her hands.

"Are you abusing the poor thing again?"

Her boy perked up when she heard him. She turned to where it came from to find Syaoran smirking down at her by the door.

"Loving him, it's completely different," she fired back, seeing his smile deepen at her retort.

"I think the poor dog would qualify it as torture," he ducked as she threw the ball at his head.

"You looked rather pensive there for a bit. Penny for your thoughts?"

"Nothing remarkable," she lied back down, opening her arms as if she was going to do a snow angel. She felt his approach by the sounds of his shoes against the grass. She grinned to his side as he plopped himself right next to her and dragged her right to him just like she'd done to the dog a few minutes before. "I was just thinking about the lack of stars."

"The lights of the city obscure them," he brushed a few of her strands out of his face as she settled against his shoulder.

"I felt like catching a glimpse of one tonight," she could feel his eyes on her when she told him. It was getting hard to read his reactions to anything she said these days. Everything had a different connotation than three months before when she took over his bed to spend the night.

"Do you want to make a wish upon a star?" his playful tone earned him a hard pat to his side which made him grunt. She felt satisfied by eliciting that amount of pain for the little time and the effect it had on him.

"You never know," she griped back as he started running a hand on one of her sides in a mocking rebuttal. "I may wish for a boyfriend."

Syaoran's hands stilled as he felt a punch in his lower gut at her words. There had been no physical contact, but the pressure had definitely cut off his air supply.

"Why do you want to waste it on something like that?" he asked her, his hand tentatively reaching for hers as she turned to his side to bury her whole body in it.

"I'll have someone to give my attention to," she replied, her eyes closed with a smile of contentment on her face as she took in his scent.

"Sakura, you already have Touya, Yukito, the blasted dog you whined a whole month for, and me," he was groused by the fact that she'd even voiced that aloud.

"Then maybe what I want is someone to pay attention to me," she whined lightly before groaning as he pulled himself up. She remained against the grass, looking at him closely as he simply stared at her. She couldn't read him at all and that bothered her more than she could let on. She may have lost her ability to read him, but it seemed he still could read her like a book.

"I'm not whining or anything," it sounded bad to her own ears as she realized that's how it appeared. It looked that way because it was exactly what she was doing. "But Touya and Yukito have each other and their work. You have your studies and school to keep you happy, and most of the time I'm left to my own devices while another day passes by."

"And you think a boyfriend will change that?" he had to bite back his curse as he saw how hurt she was by his lack of understanding at what was the actual root of the problem.

"No, but it was just a thought," she rolled to her other side, a sad expression flashing by his eyes before she could fully turn away.

"Well, you can't have one," he petulantly announced to her. "Not until you're sixteen anyhow. That's what Touya said."

"Touya's a big growling bear," she waved it away; sure he was kidding with her. She'd rolled her eyes when Touya had announced it, and she did it again now as she recalled the scene. "And I think he said it for our benefit more than an actual fact. He still thinks there's something going on between us even though I've told him otherwise repeatedly."

"He's right though," the sharp pain on his side abated somewhat when he saw her smile at his authoritarian tone. "We're only about to enter the 8th grade anyhow, you're too young to have a boyfriend."

"How about dating?"

"Isn't that the same thing?" he felt like he was digging himself deeper into a hole he had no chance of getting out of.

"In a way," she gave into that one, feeling him pull away from her further. "But what about you?"

"Me?" he was struck dumb by her turning the topic back to him. "I have no interest in dating anyone right now. I have to concentrate all my attention on school as it is to be able to get into the advanced program for next year."

"Are you doing all this just to prove yourself to them?" she asked him point blank, already knowing the answer to that question.

"I have to prove myself," he looked up to the black sky, wishing there were some stars to distract him. "I owe Yukito and Touya their taking us in when they had no reason to."

"But what about me?" she was back to the root of her problem, she had nothing.

"You're Sakura, what more do you need?" he pulled her up to his arms, pointing out to a miniscule twinkle up high. "And there's your star."

She gasped at his find, exuberant at finally having found one in the blackness overhead.

"Get inside both of you, that's enough frolicking for the night," Karen called from the backdoor, shaking her head at the young teenagers.

Syaoran stood, professing a hand to help her up. He did not let go of it for the rest of the night.


	6. Complications

MS

The bold word or phrase denotes a change in scene or perspective.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CCS characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 6: Complications_

The past six months had gone by as a blur.

Settling to a schedule of activities had taken a lot of compromises from the two young guardians as they tried their best to be accommodating to their charges school activities. A semblance of quietness had overtaken the house as Syaoran and Sakura flitted through activities to find things that would interest them.

Syaoran had taken right to martial arts. He had practice every afternoon in their private school, cutting right through Sakura's cheer-leading practice. They had also been ordered to stick to a musical instrument, a cooking class, and community service. That coupled with their schoolwork kept them occupied.

Yukito was always there after school activities were done to pick them up, which meant he had a better set schedule than Touya, who took the fallout of keeping up their work schedules full time whenever something arose.

The two detectives were busy covering their tracks on the murder files they had assigned to their load. Yukito's clear thinking and Touya's instincts worked in their favor as they closed one case after another.

Syaoran turned out to be very musically challenged, so they decided to let him off any musical activities, which pleased him immensely. He didn't think anyone's ears could survive most of his playing. Sakura chose to stay with the piano, seeing as Touya was quite good with it. When she was comfortable enough, they worked on quite a number of duets that had them spending a lot of time together when they had free time. This was how the young girl found herself appreciating the older man much more.

He wasn't a father, because he never scolded her or really gave her orders. If she had to define it, their household worked with a less defined parenting style. Syaoran was the friend that just happened to live in the same house, while Yukito was the mothering uncle that took them in hand when needed. He had to mother everyone in the house or they would run him ragged. Touya was something else entirely. He was more of a sibling in how he acted with her, the older brother that growled a lot but smiled at her antics.

"How did you come to play the piano?" she asked him once, knowing by his expression that he was surprised by her question. "You're so good at it, and you don't even look at the sheet music."

"Sometimes instruments come easy to people," he replied initially. "I was in love with the piano since before I could walk for the simple fact that my mother used to play it just for me."

"You never talk about your family," she was shy in the statement, unsure of how to proceed as she saw him smile kindly in reply.

"It's a subject that makes me sad," he explained. "But happy too because of all the memories I can recall. It doesn't hurt too much to talk about them now than some years before. My mother placed me in front of a piano before I could speak and she made me happy. I was amazed at how by simply hitting some keys, she could make such wonderful music come out."

"You really loved her, didn't you?" she murmured.

"She was the glue that kept us together," Touya smirked as he recalled how she ruffled his hair to take him off a temper. "I couldn't touch much look at a piano for a long time after she died."

"How long ago has it been?" she pried.

"Almost thirteen years," he poised his hands over the keys, waiting for her as well before they resumed their practice. "With more dedication to it, you'll be ready for the recital in no time."

She simply groaned as they started the piece once again.

"I think Sakura and Touya have a more easy going relationship now," Yukito pointed out to Syaoran as they both prepared their meal. They had lucked out on a free Sunday that had all four of them together. Touya was taking Sakura through her paces at the piano and Syaoran had found sanctuary in the kitchen.

Yukito soon put him to work, finding that he had quite a proficient talent for it. "You're good in the kitchen, aren't you?"

Syaoran shushed him, looking all around the room to make sure they were truly alone. "If Sakura finds out then she'll refuse to bake me a cake for my birthday like she promised me."

Yukito laughed as he saw the red tint start to form and spread over the teenager's cheeks. If they weren't careful, they would really find themselves into more than just crush territory. He suspected it had already gone beyond that as maturity continued to set in.

"She does seem to have a devil of a time cooking, doesn't she?"

"But she enjoys it," Syaoran coughed away his embarrassment as he refused to meet his eyes. "She's happy flubbing around in the kitchen, although it takes her just as long to put it back to rights after she's done."

"And so she promised to bake you a cake?"

"She promised a chocolate cake," it hadn't taken long for them all to figure out that Syaoran had a weakness for chocolate and exploit it as such. Yukito was sure that's what had given Sakura the idea of taking a cooking class in the first place, as the teens were easy to read when they were concerned with one another. "If she finds out I quit the cooking class because I can almost make anything from scratch, she'll refuse."

"You two are rather prideful, aren't you?"

"I think all of humanity has that failing," Syaoran corrected him, grinning as the older man let the item on the stove simmer before adding the recently cut vegetables.

At their impromptu picnic in the backyard, they found their conversation flitting through all the subjects. It didn't take long for them all to devour the food. "I feel like going on a run," Touya remarked as he saw the mutt's ears perk up at the word. While the dog was certainly Sakura's, he'd taken more with Touya than with anyone else in the household.

"I believe your dog understood you," Yukito warned him, before the growing pup scrambled to a run in their direction with his tale wagging in happiness.

"This is Sakura's dog," Touya fired back, but not before settling a hand down to rub against him.

"Tell that to him," she laughed as the pup scrambled all the way up to Touya's face in a second, slobbering all over him. "The traitor never looks in my direction when he's around."

"Now, now," Syaoran and Sakura set to help Yukito clean up as Touya was engrossed by the bundle of energy in his arms. They rolled their eyes at his griping when it was clear that he enjoyed having the puppy around to lift their spirits up. He was the one also constantly feeding him treats, which had endeared the dog to him for life.

The drive to the main park around the area was filled with laughter and groans as the pup managed to get into every crevice and arm before they even managed to get out of the car. The kids took off in a run right behind him as soon as he took off.

Touya leaned against his car, wishing for a cigarette knowing he'd quit the habit for good. Still, sometimes he craved the silence it afforded him.

"Thinking of your bad habits," Yukito wasn't amazed when Touya simply lifted a brow in response to his dig at his expression. "Do you think he'll ever rollerblade again?" he motioned to Syaoran as the pair now ran away from the pursuing dog.

"I haven't seen him pick up his skates after they were returned from evidence," Touya replied, his watchful eyes taking in their surroundings. He started ushering his partner to one side.

"We'll be by the lake," Yukito took it upon himself to announce it to the kids so they would find them if needed.

Sakura motioned to the pair as Syaoran threw a stick, engrossed in their playing.

"We won't be missed," Touya told him as Yukito kept looking back. "Stop worrying so much."

"Those are the times that I worry," his partner was resigned to being half dragged to an undisclosed location. "When you say things like that something is bound to happen."

"You worry too much," Touya flicked his partner's hair out of his ear as he cradled the side of his face in a show of affection.

"Are you going to kiss me already or what?" Yukito joked as they simply stood looking into each other's eyes.

"I didn't know you were in such a hurry," Touya's grip tightened somewhat before he pressed his lips down. It wasn't long before Yukito wrapped one arm around his waist to bring him closer to him.

"That was rather unlike you," Yukito remarked as Touya pulled back. He was used to their embraces being hurried and hot.

"Like I said," he thumped his nose before continuing. "We have enough time."

"You're exhausted, aren't you?" Yukito pulled him beneath a shading tree. "You've been working a lot of overtime over the West disappearance."

"I can't help it, you know me best after all," he let himself be pulled to lay his head on Yukito's thighs. He kept one of his hands pressed to the side of his face as he closed his eyes. The breeze ruffled their locks as the fresh dew and the smell of nature overpowered all the rest. "We never seem to have any quiet time anymore."

"Between our jobs and the children I can barely keep up," Yukito admitted as he ran his fingers over Touya's skull, his digits combing the somewhat long strands of hair. Touya moaned in appreciation as his massage completely relaxed him.

Yukio could only smile as his partner appreciated his efforts. "I'm sorry for being such a grouch to you."

"Sometimes I look at Sakura and I just see that little girl's face instead, staring at me indignant over the fact that we don't even have a clue," he spoke of the case he was currently handling with Duo Maxwell. Yukito had spent the last month doing more traffic details than actual detective work, which worked well with their schedule needs. Technically, he wasn't part of the case.

"I understand," the simple words of acceptance drained all of Touya's anger and despair over their inability to get any leads. Touya missed his police partner, but he figured he dealt well enough with Maxwell, and the guy was a very good detective, even though he was pretty much a rookie. Still, there was no balance between them as they were both hotheads with a propensity for trouble.

Scauffer had also announced his plans to retire before the next June, and rumors were already going around over his replacement. They didn't mind that the old man had decided to finally retire, since he had enough money and time in the metropolitan police to enjoy his grandkids.

"Is he asleep?" Sakura whispered as she came upon the scene.

Yukito merely nodded as he continued to move his fingers through Touya's hair. Her demeanor dropped slightly as she took in the scene before her with a contented smile. "I was going to invite him to join us; Biki's getting impatient that his favorite person hasn't joined in the play."

"Between you guys and him," he motioned to the now lightly snoring Touya, "that dog does not need any help in spoiling him. How am I ever going to get him to behave?"

"You'll manage somehow Yukito," Sakura patter his shoulder in understanding. "You always do. Although I keep thinking that the big kid you'll always have to look after is him."

They both chuckled as Touya moaned and moved somewhat. Sakura left to impart the news to Syaoran that they would be left to their own devices for awhile while Yukito closed his own eyes as he leant his head against the tree trunk and enjoyed the tranquil moment.

They were far in between.

**It **was the third disappearance and Touya had a really bad feeling. The small pieces they had been able to gather were starting to come together and what he saw as emerging from the puzzle did not please him.

"What do you think?" Duo asked him, the same haunted look reflected in his own expression as they poured over more reports and accounts.

"I think you already know what I'm going to say," he pulled at his black hair in a gesture of impatience before slamming the latest report shut on his desk. His hands became fists as he connected the information in his mind.

"It may not be our case in a bit," Maxwell's expression lit up as he spotted the people coming from behind Touya's desk. His flirty expression was back as he stood from his chair to welcome them.

"Why if it isn't two of my favorite ladies in the whole wide world," his welcome had Sakura giggling as Hilde Maxwell, Duo's wife, just lifted a brow at his theatrics. Duo bowed to the two ladies rather extravagantly and then pulled his wife to a very fervent embrace.

Sakura managed to salvage the items she'd been carrying before they hit the floor as he hauled Hilde to his side. After a big and smacking kiss, and a few whistles from the rest of the department, Duo finally let go of his wife to pat her flat stomach. He kissed it and left a hand there as his face was overtaken by a goofy grin.

Hilde took the chance to smack his shoulder, admonishing his previous display, but winking at the grinning Sakura by her side. "I was bringing you some food since you're pulling a double shift, but I think I changed my mind and I'll have Sakura give it to Touya."

Duo looked ready to snap into a tearing rage as his wife stared him down from almost one foot beneath him. "You're in the doghouse now Maxwell," came the catcalls from the other desks only to have the young officer show them the finger.

"Hello Touya," Hilde's roll of eyes were missed by her husband as she placed a kiss on the other man's temple. She brushed away the bangs that littered his face from lack of a comb in a motherly fashion that he had no choice but to put up with.

"How's the pregnancy treating you Hilde?" he smirked before patting his lap so she could sit on it. She let out a suffering sigh before accepting it before he pulled her on it so he could proceed. "You've done it now lady. Now that you're having Duo's child it means there's no chance for us to run away together."

"I'm offended," Duo made sure the pair heard him, chuckling as Hilde childishly stuck a tongue out at him.

"I was sure that since he finally knocked me up, you'd give up on me Touya but maybe I was just underestimating your love," she made a show of placing a hand against her temple, her palm facing outwards as if she was going to pass out.

"You know I'll always love you baby," he pulled her face to his and made to kiss her, only to have his head pulled back somewhat forcefully by Maxwell, whose brow was ticking.

"Now I'll appreciate it if you kept those bumbling lips of yours away from my wife," he retorted before taking her away and settling her on his own lap to snuggle against him. "She prefers me, see?"

"Of course she does," Touya made to straighten his desk as Sakura finally approached them. "She's stuck with you so she has to make do."

"Don't worry Touya," Sakura plopped herself down on his lap, her eyelids flying as she made a face only a mother could love. "You'll always have me by your side."

The rancorous laughter at his disgusted face had Scauffer make an appearance from his closed office. "I appreciate the laughter but please knock it off. Some of us have to keep a modicum of professionalism around here."

"I wonder who he's talking about," Touya made sure the old man heard him before he slammed the door closed. He hugged Sakura to him, taking in her features as she started to squirm to be let out. "I haven't seen you in three days little girl," he pulled at her ponytail, to have her slap his hand away.

"Well, that's what work will do to you," she replied, straightening her school uniform. "I only came to see how you were doing since my cheerleading practice was canceled and I had nothing else to do."

"Does Syaoran know you're not in school?"

"Nope," she turned around, which clued him in that she was in a miffed state. "He's not my keeper."

"I have a feeling they had an argument," Hilde snickered as Duo stated the obvious to them all.

"That's fine by me," Touya told all and sundry before his communication line began to ring. Hilde felt her husband tense as his own began to beep as well. "We have to go," they announced before they said their goodbyes with guns holstered and jackets buttoned.

"Well, I'll be on my way then," Sakura chirped before sauntering out of the department to the traffic division. It was almost time for Yukito to leave to go pick them up from school.

"What are you doing here Sakura?" his surprise was evident as he caught sight of her.

"I was let out early and decided to give you all a visit. I haven't seen Touya in three days after all, and also wanted to inform you that I will be going to a classmate's house to work on a project we got assigned."

She spoke to him of everything that had happened at school in her classes, knowing that it pleased Yukito when she shared her day with him. He pulled some money from his wallet, instructing her to take a cab home if there were no other modes of safe transportation if it was dark when they were finished. "I don't want you taking the subway or walking, is that understood?"

She nodded to him, somewhat guilty over the big lie she had just told him. She was not going to a classmate's house, or had her activities canceled. She'd just been so mad at Syaoran that she really didn't want to be anywhere near him for the next couple of hours. She'd left the school after giving some excuse to the cheerleading captain because she wanted him to think that she'd done precisely the opposite of what he'd ordered her to do.

"Moron," she gulped down her guilt as she decided to enjoy the day in central park before returning home.

**Syaoran** was more than livid when he finished his karate club workout and activities to find no sign of Sakura. He knew for a fact that she had a cheerleading practice that would run parallel to his own. He made his way to the gymnasium, only to find one of her partners tell him that she'd skipped the practice to run an errand.

It was then that he'd just seen red, thinking of what she could be doing that no one else knew. He felt like striking a wall, his breathing shallow and rough as he waited for Yukito to arrive.

"Sakura's not here," the words didn't seem to faze the detective.

"I know," Yukito waited for Syaoran to accommodate his things on the backseat before setting off. "She came by the station earlier and told me she was going to work on a project with a schoolmate."

He kept his mouth shut, his temper rising as he decided to keep his own suspicions to himself. He would bet everything he owned against that statement. He was more than certain that she did not have any such thing and was doing this on purpose.

"Is there something wrong?" Yukito's eyes bore on his for a moment through the rearview mirror as Syaoran sulked in the backseat.

"We had an argument today," he finally admitted, knowing that Yukito would know sooner or later.

"And was it your fault or hers?" he asked in such a way that Syaoran knew he was asking if he had reflected on the problem to really know the answer.

"I overreacted to something," he groaned as he realized he'd played right into his jealous rages when she'd thrown it at his face. Yukito did not ask for more, knowing that it would all spill out eventually.

"She was talking to one of our seniors today," he could see the whole thing as clear as day in his mind as he recounted the event. "She was all flirty and welcoming when he invited her for a ride in his car."

"Ah," Yukito surmised the whole thing from that one statement.

"When I confronted her a bit, she accused me of spying and I told her that I just didn't want to interrupt them. Then things just spilled out of me. I told her that if she accepted his ride, she'd come home used and empty. I told her just what was in that guy's mind."

Syaoran's head hit the glass of the window lightly. "She then flat out told me she'd had no intention of accepting the offer, but that now she wasn't too sure. Things escalated and before I knew it she was within an inch of slapping me senseless."

"I gather some hurtful things were said in that exchange," Yukito waited for the security gate to open before continuing further into the drive to the house.

"I didn't mean any of them, but she looked at me like I was a complete stranger."

"I take it you thought she'd really accept after that, didn't you?"

"When she wasn't there after practice I thought the absolute worst. When they told me she'd skipped practice, I was ready to punch the wall," they entered the house, going straight to the kitchen. The kitchen was their place to talk. "And then I just felt the absolute worse."

"Just breathe it out Syaoran," Yukito walked him through it, taking the leftover cake from the fridge so that they could each have a piece. "You need to apologize to her first, and then actually talk in a rational manner. That's the only way you'll get anything accomplished."

"I just don't know what to say."

"Maybe actually telling her why you reacted that way will be enough," Yukito smirked at the young man before him, his lost look returning. "When are you thinking of telling her that you like her? When she's getting ready to walk down the aisle at her wedding?"

"Why does it have to be a wedding? We're only thirteen," Syaoran was caught in a deer in the headlights type of moment.

"It's just an expression. You guys are definitely young, but I've seen you struggle with your budding feelings since we met. It's been almost nine months and instead of things balancing out, they keep escalating in my estimation."

"How do you think they'll react if I tell her I want her as my girlfriend," Syaoran blushed intensively before continuing. "She's the only girl I've ever thought of in that respect."

"Maybe not going completely for broke would be a good idea," the caution alarmed him more. "I think that saying simply 'I like you' is already going to give her enough to think about."

"I don't think I'll have the courage," Syaoran stated back, his eyes focused on the glass in front of him, lost in thought.

**Sakura **wasn't quite sure what was going on.

One moment she'd been minding her own business, and the other she'd been shoved into a vehicle and hit over the head. It had fazed her at first, making her lightheaded and making it hard for her to focus. She felt someone tugging her hands behind her back, her vision filled by the school bag she'd dropped from the initial contact taking all of the space.

Her hands had been bound easily but tightly behind her back, a piece of cloth covering her mouth before she felt the whole vehicle jerk into motion. Her mind tried to make sense of what had happened, only to keep coming back to the various events that had taken place the whole afternoon.

She took in her surroundings, seeing the dark tempered glass covering the van's windows which would prevent anyone from looking into the vehicle. There was a wall between the back where she was and the front part of the car, and scarce light filtering through the thin half foot white glass on the top.

She had an argument with Syaoran earlier in the afternoon, making her rashly skip her practice and pay a visit to Touya and Yukito. She'd then used a bit of the money to entertain herself while she stewed over the prospect of going home. She'd gone to the park and participated in various events that were currently playing, and then she'd gotten something to eat.

The sky had lightened considerably, which had told her it was time to make plans to go home. She'd walked a few blocks down, thinking of flagging down a taxi only to be conked and dragged through god knew where and placed in this vehicle.

Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't move her hands, and her feet were useless to her in this cramped space. She stiffened as they slowed down. She could hear nothing but the noises of the vehicle as the engine was shut off. She waited, and then nothing. The tears rolled as she was left in perpetual darkness, immobile and completely at someone's mercy as the time rolled unmercifully by.

She ached, cramped and scared when the side door finally opened. She could see nothing as someone reached for her. She could not protest as she was carried. If she guessed, by the abandoned streets and utter devoid of life around them, it was very late at night.

Syaoran would be worried, she thought to herself as she felt a prick on her arm. Exhaustion claimed her.

* * *

This is my oldest story here that is published and unfinished. I have made a promise to myself to rectify the situation. I will always finish a story, it might just take a bit of time. Hopefully it won't take too long so I can then move onto 40 Seconds, and the other unfinished projects I already have. Also, I have another story I've started months ago titled Dancing at Midnight that will be the 49th story loaded on this site, which will bring Discretion to being number 50. I also have the first chapter of My Sexy Boss and Secret of my Heart so that I can give them all my attention when I'm caught up with my current headaches. I hope you all look forward to them.


	7. 24 Hours

MS

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CCS characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 7: 24 Hours_

"A rash of unexplained disappearances followed by murders has hit New York from a sadistic killer that is being currently tracked by the FBI as well as local law enforcement," the anchorman announced as the news hours was winding down. "While no actual proof of the possibility of all these events being related, the possibility of a serial killer can not be discounted as released by the police spokesman. There are currently no leads to report on the disappearance of Lydia Wade," the news was stopped as Yukito turned the TV off. Syaoran did not look up from his place at the table as he finished his homework, giving side glances to the clock that hung over the kitchen wall.

"It's rather late, isn't it?" Yukito pointed out as he observed the young man repeat the same gesture at a faster rate.

"Yes," was his reply to the absentminded comment, deciding to focus on these last few problems and call it a night for his studies.

When it was nearing 10, he was frantic. It was way too late. She hadn't even called. "She hasn't answered her phone, has she?" he inevitably answered his own question as he kept silent before Yukito, who kept the house phone clasped in his hand.

They could only stand it for one more hour before Yukito broke out the contact book given by the school directory and started making phone calls. Syaoran ran through all of his school friend's numbers for any information, only to find that no one knew a thing.

"None of the teachers told me of any assignment that would require Sakura to work with another student," Yukito was mad, Syaoran was not fooled by his calm façade, seeing the stormy look in his eyes. "I'm going to have to assume that she lied to me about it."

"It still doesn't explain why she hasn't come home," Syaoran knew his suspicion had been right after all. "She knows that you would worry and she would have at least called home if she had access to a phone."

"I know that," Yukito disappeared into the kitchen, the sound of running water overtaking the silence while he used it. "I have to call Touya."

"Good luck with that," Syaoran managed, struggling with his own worries as Yukito dialed for the inevitable blow-up that would result.

Syaoran slipped away, his thoughts running from one place to another as they had no anchor. Her disappearance could mean a lot of things. What if she was in a hospital, in such a state that she could have no communication whatsoever and they still hadn't found who to contact?

"Biki," he whistled authoritatively to the dog that soon came running, wagging his tail and lolling his tongue to meet his friend. He barked and appreciatively lifted his head for the inevitable pat.

He knew Sakura wasn't stupid. She also had quite a remarkable memory. Her personality would not have her worry her love ones just because she was in a temper, no matter the reason. Something had interfered with her return home. He couldn't just leave him, and simply moved the dog inside. The house rules could be broken while they dealt with the situation and Biki was part of their family as well.

"Where would she have gone Syaoran?" Yukito asked him, his eyes alert as he finally hung up on his partner. He really didn't know if it was better for him to leave the house or wait to see if someone would call.

"You know her best out of all of us, especially the state she was in emotionally," Yukito just wanted answers. "Would she have gone to her old house, her old haunts, visit an old friend?"

"No," Syaoran discounted each and every possibility. "She has no love for our old neighborhood, and I was her only friend. Even in our old school, she never hung out with the other girls or classmates."

"But where would she have gone this afternoon," Yukito focused their thoughts into one track. It would do them no good to just wait and not take action.

"She probably wanted to unwind, and be by herself but not totally alone. She can't stand to be alone with just herself and her thoughts for company for too long."

"I'm going to call all the regional hospitals just in case," Yukito explained as he searched for phone numbers on the online directory of the city. "If that gets us nowhere, Touya is going to need a starting point while combing the city for her."

"He can't do that, it's impossible in this big place," Syaoran knew it too well. If someone really didn't want to be found by regular means, they had plenty of ways to disappear from the watchful gaze of the world without sounding any alarms.

He thought of a way, but discounted it for now. He would use it if it came to that. He would wait and see how things would progress first.

**Her head ached. **Her mouth was dry and her hands were still tied behind her back. She opened her eyes, the blackness warning her. She had either gone blind as she felt her eyes were open, or she was in a room to which not even the outside lamplights of the city could reach her. She was resting on a bed, the springs contorting loudly as she moved an inch on her side. Her arm had lost all feeling, which spoke of how long she'd been in that position.

She was facing a wall, she was sure of that and her clothes were contorted around her. Her gag was still on her, which bellied her wish to scream to the top of her lungs. She was beyond scared. She was terrified.

She had no coherent thought as the hours passed, her eyes refusing to close and conserve her strength. Her body refused to relax when she heard the creak of a door, after the unmistakable crack of a key and lock.

She refused to turn to the noise, her body tense for anything. If anything, she was frightened more by the fact that whoever had taken her, was simply watching her. There was no move to come closer to her.

When he left her again, she screamed coming out muffled by the gag. Her frustration was a blessing, as it cleared her mind. She would fight, that much was clear. She would, but she was going to be smart about it.

She didn't know how much time had passed before she got company again. She acknowledged his presence hoping that it would spark something. She desperately needed to use a bathroom.

The person before her baffled her. She did not know them. He was just an ordinary man, easily passable in the streets if you encountered him.

"I'll take the gag off now, but you should know that even if you scream your voice raw, no one will come to your rescue. No one will hear you."

Her thoughts raced to how he could possibly know that with such certainty.

"The one before you lost her voice, only to find she was quite without help," he took great delight in informing her of the fact as he finally complied. She refused to look away from him.

"I like that," he remarked, his fingers brushing against the side of her temple. "You don't shy away from me like you're afraid of me."

Sakura didn't know if it would be better to show fear or not. She didn't know what would feed him and it only bolstered her courage. She had no choice but to confront the situation unless she wanted to be swept away by despair.

If she had to guess, he was somewhere in his twenties. His face lacked the hardness and maturity portrayed by both Yukito and Touya, but that in itself told her nothing. There was a boyish mischief in his eyes as he looked at her when he asked her. "Are you scared of me?"

"Should I be?" she'd debated it for a bit before answering him with a query.

"Maybe, maybe not," was his cryptic reply.

"**There's **nothing we can do until 24 hours have passed officially," Scauffer's face was more haggard and tired than many of his subordinates had seen in the past few years. Still, his exhaustion could not mask the alertness in his eyes as he delegated to each officer before him. "We can not be derelict in our present duties, but I also know how each person feels in this prescient over the current situation."

Touya was half listening, his mind occupied with the very facts of police work and how things operated. He knew for a fact that Sakura would never pull a stunt like this deliberately, and if she hadn't made it home by this time of the night, then something was keeping her from it. He left Scauffer to brief in the mounting numbers of officers that had set a lot of their work aside to get into his office. He closed the door, eyeing the phone somewhat malignantly before taking a deep breath and dialing it.

"I need to speak to him," he cursed under his breath, apprehensive over what the response would be. "Tell him it's Touya."

It didn't take much time for him to be connected directly to the source. "And what does my wayward great grandson need at two in the morning?" the voice was gruff, asleep and tedious expecting an answer as soon as possible.

"Great grandfather," Touya bit his tongue over the retort he really wanted to give. "I need your help."

There was a full oppressive silence that had him wondering if the phone had been cut off.

Amamiya felt his heart rate pick up as the words he'd been waiting for over ten years to be spoken by his great grandson were finally said. He cleared his throat, emotion choking him as he hoped this was his chance to mend the rift he had with his only link to his deceased daughter.

"What is it?" he was fully awake by then, reaching for his cane to make it to his robe.

"I'm sure you're aware that I have a ward," Touya replied, rubbing his face so he could concentrate.

"Yes, your grandfather has kept me updated in your current exploits," it was delivered in a provocative tone deliberately.

"She's gone missing," Touya spoke the words aloud, which had his stomach drop even further in worry. "The first 24 hours are crucial in any investigation but officially it can't be reported after 24 hours of disappearance."

"Are you sure she simply doesn't want to go home and is with one of her friends?"

"You don't know her at all great grandfather, but that's beside the point," Touya was not going to get sidetracked. "I need you to help me push things along some channels so that I can find her."

"And will you?" the older man asked as he caught his reflection in his bathroom mirror. His once handsome face was full of lines and sadness. What did he have to live for? He'd died a bit inside when his granddaughter had defied him to marry the archeology professor and made her life with him. When he found she'd been killed, he had completely shut out his heart. There had been no humanity left in him when a young Touya had barged into his office one day to demand he keep his daughter's case open with his influence, only for him to throw the young boy out, his heart dead inside his chest.

It was painful to see the young man that took so much after his father in appearance, that it had been easy to blame them all for Nadeshiko's untimely death, as well as the disappearance of her young baby. It was his penance for not having been there for his daughter. He alone had been at fault over what had occurred and Touya had shouted it to his face, that he would never been forgiven for it.

He'd known right there that he had lost his great grandson forever. The loathing present in those dark eyes was a complete contrast of the comprehensive glances his daughter had given him in her young years.

But then there was a chance, and he would take it. His eyes reflected his age most of all, he would not be long on this earth. He had outlived his wife, his brothers, their wives, and his daughter. If he did not make things right with his grandson, he was never going to be able to look Nadeshiko and her daughter in the afterlife when it was his time to join them.

"Yes, I'll find her," his conviction spurned him forward. "It would be easier with your help."

"I'll see what I can do," the phone went lifeless in his ear, prompting Touya to place it back in its place. Scauffer stayed by the door of his own office as he gave the young man some time to recollect his bearings.

"_They are dead," his great grandfather's voice cut him deeply. Touya could only look up at the raging face before him, backing up slightly as the old man sharply closed the files in front of him. _

_He bolstered his courage, or he wouldn't be able to get anything accomplished. "My mother may be dead," he gulped somewhat at the words, tears rushing forward as he made the admission. "But my sister is alive. My little sister has not been found, she's alive!" _

"_You're nothing but a child," the derisive tone delivered the cut remark right where it had been intended to go. "We'll never find your sister's body because she wasn't needed from the start. A small baby would not survive." _

_He'd known it right there, that he would hate this man so forcefully that it would be able to consume him. Touya's mourning could not be completed unless he had proof. He'd spent nine months of his life giving as much love and affection to his mother, as well as the baby she'd been carrying. The day they had told him it would be a girl; he knew that he already loved her before she was even born. His mother had talked to him over his responsibilities as they continued with their daily life when he was an older brother. _

_He'd bowed to her, staring at the little bundle in the bassinet at the hospital after she'd been delivered, that he would be the best big brother ever. His father had laughed after he'd inquired over his serious face only to receive the same response. The disappearance of them both, a mere three days after giving birth had little impact over the little boy, until he'd comprehended what it meant. _

"_This is all your fault old man!" he shouted at the top of his voice, his resentment and vulnerability shining through as he lashed out. "They took her because she was your granddaughter and you didn't even care! That's why my mama's dead!" _

"_Get him out of here," was his only reply as the secretary entered the office after hearing the shouting. "I don't have time for the kid's tantrums." _

"_I hate you!" his words resonated through the expansive office, received with no reaction from the man behind his impressive desk. _

As an eight year old boy, he'd had no choice but to react that way. As he'd grown, he'd placed that memory the back recesses of his mind, as he lived for his goal. But now, the past needed to stay where it belonged, as the present and future was more important. Seven years after the death and disappearance of Nadeshiko, Sakura Kinomoto had been pronounced dead by the courts. His father had taken to traveling to his digs, not making any place his home as he immersed himself in his work, and Touya had no other recourse but to make a life for himself on his own terms and with his own rules.

Little Sakura was in trouble now, and he was going to get her back. He wouldn't be able to look at himself in the mirror less show his face to anyone else if he couldn't. She was a part of his family, and Touya protected his family at all costs.


	8. Running

MS

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CCS characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 8: Running_

The small girl started screaming as he approached her. Sakura could only watch in disgust as he backhanded her so forcefully that the small body went careening against the wall. "She hasn't learned. She's not as astute as you."

His maliciousness brought a shiver through her body, but she refused to let him know how disgusted she was by his display of power. "Shut it!" he shouted to the sobbing girl, whose tears would not stop. Sakura saw the fear in the little girl clearly, without looking in her eyes she already knew she'd been treated the same way for quite some time. "I wanted to bring you a playmate but if you're not going to be a good girl, I'm going to leave you here all alone, in the dark."

The change was immediate. It went from fear to full dread. "Good," he mockingly showed Sakura forward, locking them both in the new room. "You girls can entertain yourselves while I take care of some things."

Neither spoke or moved from their respective places, listening to the footsteps recede in the background. "Are you alright?" Sakura asked her, seeing that the other girl was not going to volunteer to speak. She merely sniffed in reply, before burying her face in her arms as she countered her body even closer to the wall. "My name is Sakura, what's yours?"

"Usagi," the squeak came out buffered by her arms. Sakura approached her, if for no other reason than to seek the other warm body in the room. She had to think of something to do. She did not like to be idle, and with the situation looming over her, she had even more reason to act as soon as possible.

"Shush," she placed an arm around the shaking shoulders of the younger girl. She was so small that Sakura couldn't guess her age. "It will be alright," she rocked her own body against hers, gaining strength by her own words. She had to believe it or else all hope would be lost.

"I'm going to be next," Usagi whispered, afraid of who else would be listening to her speak. "Whenever there are two of us, one of us just disappears from one day to the next."

"How long have you been here Usagi?" she used the girls name to build a rapport between them.

"Four days," which would account for all the dirt and the poor appearance of the girl's clothes. Sakura had only been there for a few hours, and she had the distinct feeling that she wouldn't be able to hold out for that long.

She got the chance to finally see her face, which made her own eyes sting. She could be no more than ten years old. She was a baby compared to Sakura's 13 years. She had oriental features, with a slight slant to her eyes which reminded her of Syaoran.

"Why are you crying," the small hand came to Sakura's eyes, brushing away the stray tear that had escaped her.

"You just reminded me of someone I like a lot," Sakura replied, taking that hand in her own giving comfort as much as she was given.

"I miss my brother," her sniffs were calmer, regaining composure as Usagi was bolstered by Sakura's courage.

"He's probably worried about you," Sakura told her, glad that she was at least talking back to her.

"It's just the two of us, so he's probably very worried," she made a sour expression before continuing. "Or that's how it was. He really likes this girl in one of his classes, I can tell. She also likes him back and I know they'll be together before long."

"Aren't you glad for him then, that he's found someone?" Sakura asked her, hearing the shift in her tone.

"I always thought I would be enough," the child's tears started to flow again. "Since our parents died, it's always been just the two of us. It's been hard on us for him to support us while he went to school and now that it seems like we have all the time in the world to spend with one another, he likes a girl."

She pouted as Sakura burst out laughing. "I'm sorry, but if only you could see the face you're making when you mention it. I think we're going to need all the laughter we can get."

"I'm sorry now for acting like I did, he didn't deserve it," she gulped down her tears, her fingers brushing against the floor as she moved her finger without thought or pattern. "I wish I could take it all back. I want my brother."

Sakura could do nothing else but take her in her arms as she sobbed. It was her turn to act like an adult. She could feel a tick inside her mind, keeping her aware of the passage of time.

**Syaoran **had gone to school the next day, for the first hour accompanied by Touya. They had done a full sweep of all the classes, trying to catch any glimmer of information that could be had. They came out with nothing. No one had seen or heard from Sakura since the day before. It wasn't until they chanced upon the detention center where they found a group of students that told them she'd been at central park the last afternoon.

"She was posing for one of those hand drawn portraits that everyone does at the events. Sakura was all by herself from what I could tell, which is what made it odd to me," the girl that was in her Algebra class looked to Syaoran at that. "She's always with you so I thought you must have been somewhere around."

"Allera," the principal motioned for her to take her seat again, looking apologetically at the young guardian at his student's lack of emotion over the situation. "A teacher caught the whole group skipping school to attend the fair during school hours, which is why they're all here to make up for their lost lessons for the day."

"At least now we have some idea of where she was last seen," Touya thanked the man, the sun blaring down on them harshly. He opened his cell phone, dialing a number without looking at it as he surveyed his calm surroundings. "She was seen in Central Park at around four."

Syaoran simply waited for them to take off to their next destination. Now the police could concentrate on the park. Someone else had to remember her there. They should be able to pick up a trail. This gave him pause to another thought. If things could be found this easily, then it was most likely unplanned.

"She's alright," Touya mistook his silence for self recrimination, his hand on the young boy's shoulders. Syaoran did not correct him. He, better than most, knew that Sakura could handle herself in most situations. But, she also had the propensity of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, which was when he usually had to step in so that the situation would not blow in their faces.

"**We've found a witness," **Touya's voice came as a haven through the phone. "Not exactly reliable, but it's the best we've got."

Touya and Syaoran had scouted the whole fair. Armed with pictures, and two back up units, they had combed through all the stalls. It had been time consuming, but it turned out to be their best lead.

"One of the producers this year was disassembling his stall yesterday, and his companion swears that Sakura bought one of his figurines before exiting. She remembers her because she was alone, and paid cash as if in a hurry."

"Are we positive it's her?"

"The man is blind, but his granddaughter completed the sale for him," Touya felt better at having disclosed this information. They had something at least. "She saw Sakura take off on the southern exit, at a leisure-like pace."

"It's better than nothing at all," Yukito replied, his dexterous fingers already pulling up a map of the area.

"There's something you should know too," Touya waited a beat before continuing. "Our witness can't be said to be too reliable as she's seven years old."

Yukito remained silent as he digested the words. In the end though, any lead was better than none. "I hope we don't hit a wall with this. The clock is ticking."

"I know," Touya shut the phone, fanning out all the officers in that direction. In a city this size, nothing could really happen without anyone seeing anything. It just wasn't possible.

Three hours later, Touya felt like throwing the towel, but harshly against his face. He was loosing faith in his abilities, at having found absolutely nothing that would be concrete to follow through. There wasn't even anything that wasn't concrete to follow through.

"We can't seem to catch a break," one of the officers remarked as they poured over a map of the area.

"There has to be something here," Touya barked; his body tight and expression fierce. "There's something we're not seeing."

"Touya, take a break. I'm not telling you to leave this place to us, but it may be good for you to just get in your car and let your body rest for a few minutes."

"He's right," Syaoran plugged from his side. "You're not going to be any good to her if you collapse."

"Alright," Touya knew when to surrender. Especially when it made sense to give into the consensus of everyone around him. He needed to shut his eyes, even if it was for a few minutes to simply crash. "If I'm not out of my car in fifteen minutes, then someone needs to wake me."

After one of the officers agreed, Syaoran accompanied him to the car. "I'll be around the car. I can't sit still."

"You haven't slept either Syaoran," Touya reminded him. "Don't make me worry about your health too."

"Trust me, when I'll be able to take a rest, I'll take it," Syaoran promised him, lifting a hand to join one of the officers on the other side of the street they were currently sweeping.

Touya closed his eyes, leaning the seat backwards and was soon unconscious. This was the first time he'd closed his eyes since getting Yukito's frantic phone call.

"Touya!" the aforementioned man struggled to wake, his body filled with spasms as a tight grip shook his shoulders.

"What is it!" it didn't take long for him to become alert. It all came flooding back to him, as he brushed against his eyes to force them open.

"You told me to wake you," the young officer replied, answering a call on his monitor. "I have to leave now, but I'll keep you posted if anything breaks."

"Thanks," Touya moved his aching body, stretching each and everyway to get the blood flowing once more. "Has anyone seen Syaoran?"

"He went with patrol 125 further on," answered the nearest officer. Touya took off in that direction.

It took him five whole minutes to figure out that Syaoran had moved on his own. After swearing that he would give a piece of his mind to the young man, he took after him. With his longer strides, it wasn't long before he was able to catch sight of him.

He grew alarmed as Syaoran moved out of the area of search completely. Touya decided to simply observe him for a bit before he made himself known. He paused after he met obvious members of a criminal class. Touya's hair stood on end as Syaoran calmly conversed with them.

The two youths flanked Syaoran from either side, and then proceeded to escort him through the streets. Touya didn't know what to think. He followed the group, picking up the pace to keep up with them. And that's how he found himself shoved against a wall and with a gun pressed against his temple.

"Who are you?" the low voice whispered into his ear, while brawny arms kept him pinned.

"Now that's my question," he retorted, seemingly unphased by the two people. He was able to turn to find himself being stared down by the darkest blue eyes he'd ever seen. The curved lips at his insolent reply were coated with a bright ruby lipstick. She didn't react when Touya raked his eye over her figure. She was built like a pin-up girl of old, the breast-forming shirt as well as the short shorts completing her image. He snickered when he got to her shoes. It clashed with the look when you were wearing some well worn sneakers.

"Are you supposed to be a hooker?" he asked her, his tone provocative as the man shoved him against the wall against.

"You could try and find out," she told him, pocketing the gun calmly to her back. "My friend might have a problem with it."

"Could you tell him to stop turning my hand behind my back," Touya smilingly suggested. "A bit of circulation would be appreciated."

"Well, that will all depend on your words," she pointed out. "You still haven't answered my question."

Touya debated for a bit, knowing that as more time passed, the longer he went without picking up Syoaran. "I'm with the kid."

"Does he know you're with him?" she retorted, her hand coming to the lapel of his suit. She withdrew his identification, raising a brow at his police badge.

"He doesn't know it," Touya did not look away, preparing himself for whatever reaction the duo would have. He was able to take a longer breath when she nodded and her partner let him go. "May I have that back?"

"Maybe," she replied, motioning for him to follow her. "We'll see."

It was a silent trek between buildings, going in complete circles. They still managed to get to the same place before the original group. "Keep quiet," she ordered him, her eyes clouding over as she got them into a building.

"Syoaran Li," she called to the young man. She muttered something to him, which had him groaning. He nodded, accepting the identification she'd kept. "He's all yours then."

With a backward wave, she took the hulking man's hand and disappeared.

"What are you doing here?" Touya asked him, uncaring for the obvious presence of the other men.

"I'm using a favor. We're getting nowhere with the police and official channels, so I'm going to try Swartz."

"Swartz?" Touya was somewhat alarmed. He'd heard of the man. The phantom of information that did not exist. "You're telling me that we've been brought into Swartz lair?"

"Keep it to yourself," Syaoran warned him, handing Touya back his badge.

"Then who the hell were those?" Touya asked instead, his eyes glancing the time.

"That was Nastasha and her burling bear," Syaoran supplied, "She's usually the shoot first and ask questions later type."

"I could tell," Touya muttered, his thoughts trying to keep up with the current situation.

Touya had no choice but to follow silently when they were moved to another hallway. Their 'guards' were being extremely careful with them both as they were moved to the second floor of the building. "You'll need to stay right here," one of them moved Syaoran forward.

"I'll be alright," Syaoran told Touya, his body did not betray his apprehension. He was directed to a door, and found himself right in front of the man he was looking for.

"Swartz!" Syaoran's eyes stared deeply into the dark eyes of the man sitting behind the desk. He looked more like an overworked office worker than an information broker. His long bangs shadowed his forehead, wisps falling over his eyes.

"If it isn't the little bird," he mockingly replied, leaning forward to his desk in complete contentment.

"You already knew I was coming," Syaoran walked up to the desk, keeping his whole form passive and cool. "How's Kyoji?"

The man's frame stilled momentarily, his dark eyes unflinching as he stared up to the standing young man. "I see you still have that unfortunate problem of opening your mouth."

"Words tend to spill out in any language when a person does that," recanted Syaoran, accepting the professed hand to take a seat. He was already here, and he had to go through the pleasantries before he'd be able to get any information.

"You always did have a smart mouth," Swartz remarked, his hand flying over the keyboard before shutting it down. "My brothers are fine. I'm still waiting on that explanation of yours on how you know of them."

"I'll never tell."

"I'm sure it had something to do with your father. He always knew much more than he let on. I could only be left wondering in why he never accepted coming to work for me."

"He never told me," Syaoran himself had wondered, but with his father's death, he had been unable to figure it out.

Swartz plucked a grape from the vine and popped it into his mouth. He smiled as silence overtook the small office for a time. Unlike most people, the silence didn't affect Syaoran in the least.

"Alright then, what has brought you to my lair today? And what in God's name possessed you to bring that cop with you."

"Touya can be trusted," Syaoran fibbed, as Touya's own appearance had caught him by surprise. He'd never meant to show the young cop to the underground information broker. These were dangerous people if one ever got on their bad side. They controlled the way information moved not only in the black market, but the leak of information that would make and break an organization in the open market.

"I need some information from you," Syaoran explained. "I know that there's nothing that happens on this city that you don't get a whisper of, and there's someone we must find."

"Are the police involved then?" Swartz asked, curious over what would have Syaoran break one of their greatest taboos.

"Touya is Sakura's guardian," Syaoran began. "He's the main reason we were not separated after the whole Simeltson ordeal."

"I think the only reason I didn't have you both shot when you showed up here thirty minutes ago was the fact that you were able to get rid of the bastard without me having to get involved. It's bad for business when it looks like I've turned against the hand that feeds me."

"I didn't know you wanted him out of the picture," the teenager murmured to himself. "But it makes sense. I couldn't have managed too inflict so much damage into his drug empire unless someone else had supported my plans."

"I should apologize to you," Swartz's face had a sour expression as he uttered the words. "Or better yet, to Sakura Marsden. I supplied some information to Simeltson that resulted in Canare's death. It was an unintentional cause and effect reaction."

"So you were the one responsible for placing Sakura in that situation," it was all making more sense. The full picture was finally coming together over the things that happened under the scene on that particular event.

"Robert would have skinned me alive," Swartz shook his head at the mention of Sakura's father. The man had been one of his supporters when he'd been making his move to establish himself. "I know how to be grateful to those that help me, and that situation was just blundered out of control. Simeltson never knew how to keep things running smoothly. Brutal strength, fear and lies were the only things he knew how to control."

"She's the reason I've come to see you," Syaoran was bolstered by the turn of events. It would make things easier. "Sakura has disappeared, and we can only come up to one solution. She's been taken and therefore time if of the essence for us."

"What do you mean?"

"We suspect that she's been kidnapped by a killer that has suddenly moved to New York. We were able to trace her movements until yesterday afternoon. A little girl, that was accompanying her blind grandfather to the Central Park fair was the last person that caught sight of her. We have a general direction of where she was going, but the area's still too much to cover. Someone must have seen something."

Swartz hands were upfront, the fingers enlaced as he processed Syaoran's words. He'd heard reports of unusual disappearances. He'd only hoped that they would move on with time. But the one now taken was Sakura.

"If there's need to make amends to her, then all we want is for your help. We need to find her."

"You're right," Swartz excused himself, his stride purposeful as he walked to the door. It wasn't long before Touya entered. He did not look worse for wear, after he made sure his charge was okay.

"Is this what we're putting all our aces on?" Touya questioned, unsure in how he truly felt over this. Relying completely on the whims of an underground information broker did not sit well with him. At least this time he'd been given his gun back, which was a step up for the last time he'd been inside the lair of the overpowering lion.

"You have to give me your word on something Touya," Syaoran turned fully to the man while they waited. "You cannot ever go against this man. You have to put this last hour out of your mind if you want him to help us. You're not here currently as a police officer that must uphold the law, but as Sakura's guardian that will do anything to find her."

"I know that," Touya's expression was solemn, his shield all but forgotten as he waited as patiently as he could. "We're still here because I think this is our best shot. I'm not an ungrateful man, and I really know how to pick my battles. Sakura is what's important right now, and if he gives us the road to find her, he is unimportant to me."

"I'm glad to hear that," Swartz's voice cut in, before he retook his seat. "I've contacted one of my suppliers from the area. It won't be long to have any information if someone caught sight of anything."

And it truly wasn't long at all.

"Number 32 caught sight of her on road 69 at around eight last night. Number 65 also reported that he clocked a van on his neighborhood at an unusual hour. He logged the times as it was expected."

Swartz threaded through the papers, taking notes down and leafing through all the papers at a very high speed. He tore the paper from his planer, handing it to an awaiting Touya. "I hope this will make up some of my part in the Simeltson spectacle."

"It goes a long way," Touya supplied as he ran through the timeline. "These notes seem very precise."

"You'll find that this organization is run to be very functional. If there's no organization, then there is no clear way to see the information we collect."

"After Swartz took over, the restructuring has made it a very profitable business to be an information broker in this city. There's nothing that happens that he doesn't know," Syaoran remarked, shaking the man's hand. "I really appreciate this."

"Don't mention it," Swartz took a drink of his hard bourbon. "This meeting never happened, you were never here and I've never seen you."

"We understand," Touya murmured, placing the paper in his pocket, his hand clasping his id badge right next to it. It had no bearing. "Thank you for your time."

There was a respectful nod of acknowledgment, before they left the room. They were carefully observed by them all, until they disappeared from the building. "What do we do now?"

Touya pondered the query. He made sure that they were strapped in before he took the paper out. He read the notes, his mind calculating all the possibilities. "We have a better idea of where to look."

"I hope he hasn't moved off," Syaoran supplied, the possibility staggering him.

"Let's just go."

The car zipped through the streets, the light filtering out slowly, as the day filtered through. They parked the car a few blocks away, a calm Touya opening the trunk of the vehicle. He contemplated the contents for a bit of time before grabbing a couple of items. Syaoran simply observed in silence, his body itching for activity.

"Here," Touya handed him a gun, his own hands searching for the safety of his own. "I don't know what we may find or be up against, so it won't hurt to be prepared. I know how you feel about guns in general, but it's the best weapon we have currently for this."

"I know," Syaoran tightened his grip on the metal object, his fingers flexing as he numbingly took off and returned the safety to its place. It steadied him momentarily, before he tucked it in the pocket of his coat. It would be easily reached if needed.

"Now we have to be methodological about this," Touya motioned for the surrounding buildings. "I'll go left, you take the right side, and well converge as soon as possible. We'll maintain contact the whole time."

"**You bitch!"** his eyes were shining, his expression dreadfully easy to read. She followed the running child, both of them struggling to close the door to the room they went to seek sanctuary.

It was outfitted to close from within, so they proceeded to do just that. It wasn't long before he was on the other side of the door, shouting bloody murder if they didn't open the door.

"We're trapped," Usagi voiced their fears as they backed off completely. They had nothing to go on, except one another. Sakura felt fear beyond anything she'd felt before as her back hit the opposing wall. She turned against it, a piercing motion in her back alerting her.

Unlike the other rooms they'd been in before, this one had an open window. The glass was jagged and broken, which afforded some free air from the outside world. She shouted through its opening.

"Someone, help us!" she scrambled to it, banging her hand against the glass. She saw the deserted streets, her resolve crumbling as the picture became clearer in her mind. She struck her head through the hole, careful to not cut herself. Her flying eyes caught the movement of someone entering the building.

"We're up here!" she shouted to nothingness, her voice bordering on the psychotic as she withdrew inside. "Someone's coming up here," she steadied the crying child by her side. "I don't know if it's a friend or foe, so we need to think of something in case it's not for our benefit."

"What could we do?" the child implored with the rants and grunts of their captor making it very hard for them to think.

"We have no choice but to jump," Sakura's declaration came flat. The young child could see she was serious. She looked back to the thundering noise beyond the door. It would be preferable to fall to her death than to have to face that awful man.

"We'll survive this Usagi," Sakura took the young girl by the shoulders, giving her hope that she couldn't truly have for herself. "We will survive."

She stamped down her traitorous thoughts; she refused to give into despair. She went to the window again, to find her prayers answered. She'd never seen such a sweet sight before her. Her heart stopped, silence overwhelming her mind as she reacted.

"Syaoran!"


	9. Waiting

MS

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CCS characters.

**Every Second**

_Chapter 9: Waiting_

"Syaoran!" his head snapped upwards, to the cry he'd been waiting for. He saw Sakura's head come out of one of the broken windows. He took off in a run to it, the closer he could get to her the better.

"Sakura!" he shouted back, desperate when she disappeared. He was able to breathe again once she reappeared. The closer he came, the easier it was for him to hear the pounding from within. He hoped Touya would be able to get there fast enough. He could feel Sakura's fear, as she took off her shirt to wrap it around her arm to break away the glass still left around the windowsill.

"Catch!" she barely warned him before a body came barreling down to him with the force of Earth's gravity propelling it. Syaoran could only react as he saw a small girl fall downwards, pushing his body to get to the right position and at the right place so that they would both survive the experience.

He felt as if a tree had fallen on him. His arms were numb, protesting over the weight that was pressing against him. He focused on the girl, seeing for the first time that she was in full hysterics, her arms wrapped around his waist like an anchor. Syaoran could only look up, only to hear Sakura cry out, completely out of his range of vision.

"Come on," he urged the young girl, using force to propel her forward. He pointed to a side of the street, endless sidewalk the only picture he could offer her for now.

"He's in there," she cried out while Syaoran told her to run. "He's going to kill her."

"Don't worry about it," he was wasting time and it was killing him. "Just run, policemen are on their way here. Run!"

She just stared at his face dumbly, before grasping his order and did as she'd been told. He waited a couple of seconds that felt like an eternity, to make sure she did as he'd instructed her. He then took off running into the opposite direction and into the building.

Sakura's lower lip was cut, stinging again and again as she struggled against him. Her captor was dragging her backwards, his fingers grasping her hair, pulling it until she thought it would simply break.

He pulled her to him, his cold hands grasping her sides, against her bare skin. She'd lost her shirt after he'd finally broken into the room. He'd pulled her backwards from the window, landing a punch to the side of her face, and her lip got caught in her teeth. The force of the blow had her reeling, which he'd used to his advantage to drag her out through the door he'd just broken.

She'd lost her footing, the earlier injury to her foot making it impossible for her to keep up with him. She'd fallen down, only to have him catch her by her hair, taking a vicious pleasure in dragging her backwards as she screamed at the accumulating pain.

She could feel his strength, which told her that he most likely had a plan to salvage what was left of the situation. She'd rationalized that this was something he'd done before, simply for the fact that he was too organized, and too calm to be phased by surprises.

"They won't get in here," he growled at her, smiling sadistically as her skirt got caught in a loose nail from the broken floorboards and ripped. She felt the tip bury itself into her skin, superficially marking a straight line as she levered her legs so that it wouldn't come in contact with her skin.

He took the opportunity to sling her upwards, lifting her like a sack of potatoes. He took off, her hands coming to a doorway, where she gripped with all her strength. He pulled at her, digging his nails over the skin of her hands, straight to the bone. Sakura sobbed, tears falling again and again as she let go with one hand, her only hope to detain him. If Syaoran was here, she could only believe that Touya and Yukito were close as well. Between the three of them, there was nothing they could not accomplish, no matter what was in their path.

She was hopeless, her arm falling lifeless to her side as her shoulder dislocated. It was unlike any other pain she had ever felt before. Her eyes crossed, inundated with moisture as her breathing became shallow. She couldn't think and could only wait for the pain to pass so that she could regain some control over herself.

"Sakura!" she cried out when she heard Touya's bellow. She kicked with all her strength, hoping to connect to anything. His hold on her slackened, only to drop her altogether. She couldn't even think as she tried to scramble out of his reach. She was taking off, when she felt the world invert around her. All she could see were stairs, her useful arm coming instinctively to her face as gravity and physics took over.

"Sakura!" Touya was dismayed over the scene he came to. Her body wasn't moving, somewhat contorted at the base of the stairs. He couldn't move for a long time, his mind going over all the possibilities of what he had found. He reached forward, his hand brushing against her temple, only to have her head fall to the side.

At the sounds upstairs, his attention went to the man that was watching them with hate. Touya matched it, his body riling up, filling up with adrenaline as it all got uncomfortably warm. He didn't remember actually grasping it, but he was suddenly vaulting over the steps, two or three at a time, his gun cold and menacingly glinting.

"No!" Syaoran reached Sakura's side, unheeding the advice of thousands, moving her body so he could see her face. He cradled her head, rocking against air as his hands came to her face.

He was loosing it; he could comprehend that much as he could hear the hard thumps of Touya barreling against the door with all his might. He barely registered the shots before he felt her breathe against his hand. He clutched her body to his tightly, embracing her to never let go, only to find that the material of his shirt was soaking in blood. Her blood.

The door crashed down, and Touya did not even register the pain on his shoulder as he continued down the room to the connecting doors. His instincts were the only ones leading him forward as he took aim at the running figure before him and fired wildly.

"I'll get you, you son of a bitch," he promised to him, before vaulting down one whole floor, his muscles straining to the maximum as he landed like a cat. His eyes were feral as he kept shortening the distance between them, his goal almost in reach. He didn't know how he did it, but he went flying in a tackle that propelled a shutting door backwards, his whole body weight slamming against it.

There was a satisfying crack on the other side, with Touya crawling around the still swinging door. He'd caught the bastard in the temple, which gave him much satisfaction, as he lay crumpled and at his mercy. He was the one responsible for it all.

Touya didn't even know how he was functioning currently, running with no sleep for close to 48 hours. All he could think of was of the names going through his mind as he clutched his gun to his side. His hand was strained, which most likely meant that he had landed in it wrong, but he had no time to focus in his own injuries as the image of a crippled Sakura ran through his mind.

The only reason he'd taken off running after the bastard was the fact that he'd heard Syaoran coming behind him. He also knew that if he didn't catch this bastard, then he wouldn't be able to sleep ever again.

He patted his pockets, realizing that he'd lost his phone, connector, and walkie-talkie along the way. He limped to the crumpled figure, his trigger hand at the ready as he crouched down and hastily patted down the assailant.

He turned him, disgusted by how commonplace and average the young man appeared to be. He pulled the handcuffs that were currently imprinted on his thigh from his early flight to the door, to use one on the wrist of the unconscious man, and drag him to a bit of exposed pipeline. He made sure it would not move with his strength before handcuffing the unconscious man to it.

He could see no blood on him, so he'd probably taken the brunt of the impact on his forehead. Touya hoped he would have a very bad concussion at least. And as for the rest, because these were persistent and oily bastards, he was going to make sure he wouldn't manage to slip away.

He fired his last shot into his leg, taking care not to hit an artery. The body convulsed, only to sag even further as blood began to flow. Satisfied, Touya clipped the gun to his holster and started the process of dragging himself through the labyrinth he'd chased the man through. Sakura had to be alright, he had to believe that.

"Syaoran," Yukito struggled to have the young boy remove his hold on Sakura. His hands still rigid, his guardian was finally able to afford some leeway so that he could examine the young girl. It was then; when he took away Syaoran's hand that he saw the blood. It was matted to her hair, the flow already stifled as he could surmise it was a shallow wound.

"She wouldn't stop bleeding," Syaoran managed to say as he stared down to his hand.

"Head injuries always bleed a lot," Yukito replied to his comment, trying to reassuring him. "No matter how shallow the cut is, it will always bleed."

Syaoran would not move his eyes away as Yukito searched her extremities. With Touya around, he had enough experience to be sure of what was a sprain, a cut, or a break. He looked up to Touya's swearing. He was holding his frame in a way that foretold another hospital stay for the young detective.

"Is there an ambulance coming?" he inquired when he managed to sit himself on the last step, to finally give himself time to assimilate the last twenty minutes of his life. It was something he'd never be able to forget.

"I called them as soon as I entered the building. I wasn't sure if I should report an officer down when I heard the shots, and just rushed forward."

"It took you long enough to arrive," Touya growled as he leaned his whole body against the steps, an arm thrown over his eyes as he started to feel each pain in his body.

"Sorry," Yukito couldn't help but smile as he applied pressure to Sakura's shoulder. She moaned soft and long under his hands, her eyes still swimming as he decided to get that particular ache out of the way.

"Syaoran," he got the young man's attention. "I need you to hold her body down."

"Why?" he asked as Yukito moved one of her arms in a somewhat circular motion.

"Because she's not going to like this one bit, even if she's still unconscious," he prodded the gaunt teenager to place his body over hers, in a straddling position. He was almost fully seated over her hips, his legs wrapped under hers as he put all his strength just to the side of her neck. Touya kept a grip on her other arm before it was all over in a second.

Sakura screamed as her shoulder was jolted into place. Syaoran caught her just in time before she banged her head against the floor. And then it all turned into a madhouse.

Officers inundated the scene, the ambulance crew not far behind. Touya announced that he would be going to the hospital in the same ambulance as Sakura. "I'll only leave this to you," he told Yukito. "Don't let him out of your sight."

He could do nothing else but nod at the request, taking the officers with him. Syaoran simply followed Touya. He was bundled into the ambulance, one of the paramedics checking his vitals. Touya then laughed, prompting Syaoran to ask.

"What's wrong with you?" he was deflated and defeated as he heard the steady rhythm of Sakura's heart.

"Nothing," Touya motioned with his head for the young man to look to his other side. "You're the one that's going to end up like a porcupine. You didn't feel him sticking you again and again, did you?"

Syaoran grimaced as he saw the needles sticking over his arm, to which he had no feeling whatsoever. "We'll have to do a scan as soon as possible," the man informed him, before he shined a light in Syaoran's eyes that completely blinded him. "Your other reflexes seem fine."

"How the hell did you get hurt?" Touya asked, biting back a curse as his body was jostled by the moving vehicle. "I'm the one that had to jump stairs, barrel through doors and run like a maniac."

"I broke the fall of a girl Sakura threw at me through a window after you entered the building," Syaoran answered deadpanned, wincing at Touya's reaction.

"You did what!"

"I almost didn't make it either," Syaoran grumbled as he closed his eyes. He could move his arm, but his fingers were not cooperating. "I probably landed on it wrong."

"You kids are going to kill me," Touya cried out, burying his head in his hands as he imagined the scene. Sakura had hurled someone out a window, with the explicit intention of having Syaoran catch them in the nick of time. "She's going to be grounded for the next six months," he declared. "There is nothing in this world that's going to make me change my mind about that."

Syaoran did not comment either way.

In between his own treatment, and simply waiting for the results, it took some time for them to get any updates on Sakura's condition.

Yukito arrived on the late hours of the night, taking it all in stride. "Between all three of you, I think we could make a corpse."

"That's nice to know," Touya's mood had not improved one bit.

"She's going to be fine," Yukito told them both, smiling inwardly at their sour expressions. "We put her dislocated shoulder back into place, so she just needs to keep it in a cast for a few weeks. She has a light cut on her left thigh, which explains her ripped skirt. She does have a broken arm and a bump in the head."

"How do you know all this?" Touya wanted to shout. He'd been waiting for hours for someone to come and talk to him.

"I caught the nurse on her way out," he replied, laughing as Touya fell against his seat. Syaoran stood, murmuring something about going to the bathroom, and both adults declined in commenting on it.

"She's alive, Touya," he had to remind his companion of that fact. "And not only that, she saved that little girl."

A laugh came barreling out of the dark haired man, his body protesting over his joyful mood. "And how."

"Well, you seem to know more about that than I do," Yukito commented, mimicking Touya's position.

"Just wait until you actually know what the hell happened in the last 3 hours of my life. Syaoran about killed me with his scheme. They're going to give me a heart attack. I won't live to see 25."

"You grumble a lot, have you noticed that?" Yukito pointed out, grinning as Touya sent him a glare.

"I'm too exhausted to take exception to that statement," he finally replied, his head about to explode.

"Good," Yukito moved by his side. "Because here comes your nurse and she's not smiling."

Yukito merely stayed by his side while he was taking into the care of the prodigious woman. Her pointing out that it had been merely a month since she'd last seen him did not make Touya feel any better.

_**Sakura**__ had been thinking hard and as fast as she could to come up with something. Their captor had brought them some food to snack on. She could tell from his complete disregard to their lack of restraints that he was unconcerned over any threat they could pose. _

_They both picked at the items, aware of their captor's attention on them. Sakura was unsure if it was the right thing to do. She picked at the bread, slipping a piece of the cheese between her lips as Usagi's eyes continued to widen with each passing second. _

_The poor girl was beyond terrified. Sakura didn't know what his usual mode operanti was. Still, she had enough sense to know that it wasn't a smart idea to eat something your kidnapper offered you. It was also a bad idea to not do as expected unless you want some unwanted attention. Her common sense told her as much. _

_The man took delight in the melodrama unfolding before him. He knew that the girls were facing a conundrum. To eat or not to eat. Sakura had no choice but to nudge Usagi to follow her example, lest he deigned to pay them more attention. After a while, he seemed to grow bore, and Sakura could breathe normally again. He left the room, which only served to agitate the younger girl. _

"_He's going to kill me!" she hissed to Sakura, her hands trembling as she moved the plate as far away as she could push it. "He's going to make me disappear." _

"_Don't get too excited Usagi," Sakura had no choice but to try to calm her down. "We have to keep our heads leveled. We cannot panic now." _

"_I was sure he was going to drug us," Usagi pointed to the bread. _

"_I'm still not sure that drugging us is not his intention," Sakura allowed for that much, alert to any changes in her body. "He may just be toying with us. He gets a perverse satisfaction out of watching our reactions." _

"_He's a bad man," the young girl's voice diminished with each word. _

"_We can agree on that point," Sakura nodded, jumping up to pace, as her body cried out for some type of physical stimulation. She had to think! _

"_He doesn't see us as a threat," she pointed out, as she pressed her ear to the wall. She could hear nothing from it, but that didn't mean that he wasn't close. "Individually we may be easy to overcome, but two of us are harder to keep track of. If we're going to do something, it's going to have to be soon. The more time he has, the more he has to torment us." _

_Sakura sighed as she shut her eyes. "I don't know anything. If I knew what rooms we had, or any layout of this place I'm sure I'd feel better." _

"_I was awake when he brought me here," Usagi spoke aloud. "He has keys to all the doors, and makes sure to lock them each time he goes through them. I don't know what floor we're on though. I was too scared to pay attention at the time." _

"_That's good," Sakura could grasp anything she could give her. "Think Usagi, just think." _

"_I don't know." _

"_Did you see anything else?" _

"_Nothing that can help us," Usagi replied. They continued whispering to one another for awhile. "If any doors are open, then we'll be lucky." _

_Trading one room for another. Sakura wanted to groan, but only at how futile it all appeared. She had no other choice though. _

_They bid their time. The next time he came in, Usagi informed him of her need for a bathroom. He complied, keeping a slackened view of Sakura. It was all she needed. Usagi tripped before coming to the door, grasping the knob to hold her body steady, and Sakura pounced. _

_With a slight movement of her hands that would have made her father proud, Sakura gripped the keys. She used her whole body weight to drive the heel of her shoe onto his foot. The seconds it provided them was more than enough for them to scramble out of his grasp. Usagi bit him on his arm when he moved to grab her. _

_Both girls ran, Sakura kicking out to him, catching him on his stomach and propelling him backwards. The door shut on its own. _

"_Here!" Usagi cried out, pulling the older girl with her. "Lock it!" Sakura placed the first key in the hole, while Usagi pressed her whole body against the door. The click washed them with relief, but only for a short while. _

"_He's up," Sakura warned her, and they both scurried to the window and as far as they could be from the door. Everything seemed to run together before Sakura threw the poor girl to Syaoran's arms. Before she knew it, she was pulled back by her hair, the grip relentless to give her pain as he backhanded her. Sakura screamed, kicking out to him in vain as he threw her over his shoulder and ran. _

_Sakura kept screaming, her hand reaching out to Touya. The tips of their fingers brushed before he disappeared. All she could see was a locked door behind a locked door, which was behind another locked door. Everything was dark; her cries drowned out as each door separated them further. _

Syaoran could only hold Sakura's hand as she cried out in her sleep. He knew she was having a nightmare, but no matter how many times he tried to wake her, she wouldn't budge. Her medications had her too heavily sedated for her to feel him. He cried silently with her, keeping her hand warm with his.

There was nothing else he could do. He was useless. He'd been useless to everyone for the past three days since Sakura had disappeared. He could offer nothing except an apology. "I'm sorry," he repeated again and again, hoping that his words would reach her at some point.

"**I wonder when he snuck in here,"** the nurse murmured, finding Syaoran asleep on his chair, his hand on the bed cradling Sakura's. The morning shift was starting. She shook her head before covering him with a blanket. She would complete the rest of her hands and check on them later.

She looked back from the door. It was a cute picture they made. She smiled and closed the door.

* * *

NOTE: I've had this done for quite awhile, sorry for taking so long to post it. Now, gears change somewhat from the next chapter on, so it may be a bit of a wait. Hopefully you guys will stick around. Thank you for reading.


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